The Strawhat's Red Devil - RobinOCZoro Love Story
by DeadGirlEtarnal
Summary: This may be overused but... She's the Daughter of Red-Haired Shanks, she was dropped off to live with Luffy. She met Ace & Sabo but when Sabo died it was the last for her as she vows to take revenge. Years later she leaves the island and sets on adventures of her own, she soon meets up with her baby brother and travels with him, finding love in more than one place. IONLYOWNANYOCS!
1. The Vow

**Name -** _Dakota Le Roux_

 **Nicknames -** _Red Devil (Marines), Sweetie (Father), Sis (Brothers), Demon (Nami), Killer (Usopp), Ko (Chopper), My Love (Sanji), Kota (Zoro), Lil Sis (Franky), DeeDee (Robin), Kay (Brook), Le Roux (Buggy), Criminal (War Lords)_

 **Age -** _22 Years Old - 24 Years Old (2 Yr Timeskip)_

 **Born -** _Grandline - February 18th_

 **Gender -** _Female_

 **Sexuality -** _Bisexual_

 **Height -** _6'1" (185cm)_

 **Weight -** _166 lbs_

 **Appearance -** _Tanned, Purple eyes, Tattoo on left eyebrow of stars (star-tattoo-3), tattoo on right shoulder of roses (Her Mothers favourites) (43-rose-tattoo-on-shoulder), Shoulder length red hair_

 **Attire -** _Swimsuit/bikini, tops, jeans, shorts, skirts, shirts, dresses, boots, high heels, belts hanging off hip, desert wear, trench coat, leather jacket, dancer girl outfit, vest, prison uniform, scarf, hat, locket (picture or Shanks & Anna), black trilby hat with a red, yellow, blue and white beads, wedding bands._

 **Interests -** _Zoro, Robin, Brothers, Father, Mother, Aunts & Uncles, fighting, sailing, games, drawing, training, sweet foods, drinking, sex, tattoos, Strawhat crew, Adventures, weapons, books, Sunny weather._

 **Disinterests -** _Buggy, Stupid people, The World Government, Celestial Dragons, Peace, Boredom, Rival Pirate crews, Marines, Shanks' pranks, Fairy Tales._

 **Personality -** _Enchanting, Snarky, Cocky, Lovable, Funny, Smart, Reckless, Brave, Hot-headed, Loyal, Supportive, Protective, Sexy, Secretive, Sly, Fearless, Playful, Bold, Proud, Flawless._

 **Family -** _Red-Haired Shanks (Alive: Father), Deadly Anna (Dead: Mother), Red Haired Pirates (Alive: Aunts & Uncles), Hawk-Eye Mihawk (Alive: Uncle), Strawhat Luffy (Alive: Little Brother), Fire Fist Ace (Alive: Little Brother), Sabo (Dead/Alive: Little Brother), Robin (Alive: Future Wife), Zoro (Alive: Future Husband)._

 **Friends -** _Monkey D. Luffy, Nami, Franky, Usopp, Vinsmoke Sanji, Roronoa Zoro, Nico Robin, Tony Tony Chopper, Brook, Red-Haired Pirates, Curly Dadan, Bandits, Nefeltari Vivi, Macino, Silvers Rayleigh, Jinbe, Marco, Whitebeard Pirates, Ace, Sabo, Laboon, Momo, Iceberg, Mayor of Foosha Village, Everyone the Strawhat's have saved._

 **Enemies -** _Buggy, Big Mom Pirates, Marines, Smoker, Sengoku, The World Government, Celestial Dragons, World Nobels, Doflamingo, Teach, Blackbeard Pirates, CP9, CP0._

 **Dream -** _Avenge Mother's death, Find the truth behind her death._

 **Status -** _Assassin (Former), Pirate_

 **Pirate Crew -** _Strawhat Pirates_

 **Position -** _Assassin/Bodyguard_

 **Bounty -** _20 Million at age 10, 35 Million at age 17, 115 Million after Alabasta incident age 22, 330 Million after Enies Lobby attack, 450 Million during 2yr Timeskip age 24, 600 Million after Dressrosa attack._

 **Crimes -** _Child of pirates (one of the Four Emperors), Piracy, Destroying 4 Marine Bases, Killing over 100 people, Assassination of 75 people and organisations._

 **Devil Fruit -** _Akuma Akuma no Mi (Demon Demon Fruit)_

 **Devil Fruit Abilities -** _Demon full form, Demon body parts form, Hellfire, Powerful attacks, Claws, Tails, Wings, Horns, Black/Blue flames, Disappearing, Speedy, Speed attacks, Sharp teeth (shark-like)._

 **Weapons -** _Knuckle dusters, Finger knife, Tekko, Katana, Guns, Pistols, Knives, Swords._

 **Combat Skills -** _All types of weapons, Hand to hand, Aerial combat, Blindsighted, Haki._

 **Haki -** _All 3 types, Observation Haki needs little work, Armament Haki needs no work, Conquering Haki needs more work (training with Father)._

 **Background -** _She was born on the Grandline (New World).  
Her Father Red-Haired Shanks and her Mother Deadly Anna met on Roger's ship the Oro Jackson as apprentice pirates along with Buggy (Aged 11).  
A year later Red-Haired Shanks and Deadly Anna began dating (Aged 12).  
Red Haired Shanks and Deadly Anna began their own pirate crew now known as the Red Haired Pirates (Aged 14). Deadly Anna gave birth to Red Devil Dakota (Aged 16).  
Red-Haired Shanks and Deadly Anna got married (Aged 17).  
Deadly Anna was killed by an attacker on their ship (Aged 20) (Aged 4).  
Red Haired Shanks and Red Devil Dakota met Strawhat Luffy and stayed on Dawn Island for a year (Aged 27) (Aged 10) (Aged 6)._  
 _Red-Haired Shanks got Red Devil Dakota to stay with Strawhat Luffy as a promise to Red-Haired Shanks (Aged 28) (Aged 11) (Aged 7).  
Red Devil Dakota and Strawhat Luffy go to stay with Curly Dadan because of Garp The Hero. (Aged 11) (Aged 7).  
They met Fire Fist Ace and Sabo, they got stronger, the strongest of the four was Red Devil Dakota as she was the oldest. (Aged 12) (Aged 10) (Aged 7).  
Sabo died and Red Devil Dakota vowed to avenge her Mother's death and kill the Celestial Dragon responsible (no one knows who did it still) for killing Sabo (Aged 14) (Aged 12) (Aged 9).  
Red Devil Dakota leaves the island (Aged 17) (Aged 15) (Aged 12).  
Red Devil Dakota journeyed to the Grandline to her Mother's home island, Demon Island, became an assassin in training after eating the Akuma Akuma no Mi, she trained hard for the next few years and came back to the East Blue to see Strawhat Luffy at his home village but was too late (Aged 17 to 20).  
Red Devil Dakota searched for Strawhat Luffy and planned to meet up with him at Syrup Village on her boat as it's the last place he would have been after the last island (Aged 20)._

 **THE VOW**

 _A young red-haired boy with a straw hat raced across the ship as a young blond haired, and blue eyes with crosses as iris' girl jogged behind him with another blue haired boy with a red nose shouting running behind them. "Oi! You brats, calm down!" An older man with blond hair and a beard shouted at them; they stopped in their tracks looking at him._

" _Sorry, Rayleigh." They all apology together, trying to play off as innocent but were far from it._

" _Come on Shanks, let's go see what food the cook can give us." The girl whispered into the red-haired boy's ear and grabbed him by the hand as they try getting away from the blue haired boy._

" _Bye Buggy." Shanks waved as the blond haired girl dragged him away._

" _Hey, Anna! Shanks!" Buggy exclaimed as the other two ran down into the ship to cause more mischief._

 ** _THE VOW_**

 _The day of Roger's death both Anna and Shanks watched on with tears falling down their faces, as the rain clouds gathered above them and Anna wiped away her tears as she grabbed Shanks' hand in hers pulling him away from the crowd and to their new adventures. Shanks tried hiding his tears covering them with his hat, but Anna could see them as she takes his hand pulling him down the street away from the crowd and into the new era._

 ** _THE VOW_**

 _Anna stood in a small room; her palms felt clammy, her nerves were getting to her as it was an important day, she looked at herself in the long mirror as one of her crew members came into the room behind her. "You look beautiful Anna," Benn said entering the room, she looked back at him in the mirror._

" _Am I rushing into this?" Anna asked him as a loud cry sounds out by the door. Anna jumped to action speeding over to the noise seeing baby Dakota in her crib crying out for her Mother. Anna picked up Dakota trying to calm the fussing baby, bobbing up and down as she soothed the crying baby._

" _You know that's not true; you love Shanks and Dakota." Benn reasoned with her and took the now calm baby in his arm as looked at Anna in her wedding dress. He held his arm out to her, and they looped arms and walked out of the room._

 ** _THE VOW_**

 _A storm had rolled in over the Red Force as the Red Haired Pirates scurried around the ship trying to keep afloat. Anna stayed with Dakota in her room as she played with her toys on the floor, Anna sat reading a book hearing the crash of thunder above and the shouts of the crew. A knock on the door pulled Anna out of her book; she got up from her chair in the corner looking at Dakota playing with her toys. Anna smiled softly in pride at her four-year-old daughter not knowing it was the last time and opened the door to see a shadowy figure looming in the hall, recognising them and hoping they would never see each other again. She pulled herself out of the room closing the door behind her to shield Dakota from whatever was to happen. Inside the room, Dakota continued to play with her boat making splashing noises that were all too familiar when a loud crash from outside then a cry from her Mother, Dakota jumped up when a loud bang like a gun went off and a scream, then nothing, just dead silence. Dakota raced to the door, but she couldn't reach the door handle, jumping up grabbing the handle and the door swings open making her fall to the floor, she got up slowly to see the dark hallway in front of her._

 _She goes out into the hallway as the ship rocked side to side abruptly. Dakota got knocked to the side and falling onto something soft, she puts her hands out onto the soft object that caught her and looked up to see her Mother lying there. Dakota looked at her and saw a pool of blood underneath her, her eyes showed no signs of life, she was dead._

 _Dakota got up running to the top of the ship where everyone was busy doing their own thing, she stood looking around for her Father's red hair but couldn't see him, she tilts her head up and taking a deep breath and screamed loud making everyone turn to look at her. Yasopp jumps over to her shaking figure, as he gets closer to her, he saw the blood covering her clothes._

" _Dakota, what happened?" He asked the crying four-year-old._

" _Mummy, she's hurt!" She cried gaining everyone's attention even more. Shanks made his way over to them taking Dakota into his arms and raced down to the hallway where Anna's body lies. Benn took Dakota from Shanks as he kneeled down next to Anna's body and cradled her in his arms crying as Dakota struggled in Benn's arms trying to get to her Father. "Daddy! Mummy won't wake up! What's wrong, Daddy!" Dakota cried out for answers but he wouldn't answer, and that was the first dead body Dakota saw._

 ** _THE VOW_**

 _The Red Force pulled into port, and everyone made their way off of the ship, Shanks and Dakota came off last as they made their way into the town for food and drink. Dakota having her father's red hair and her Mother's looks, Shanks darted his eyes around trying to keep an eye out for any boys like he had for every island they had taken port at and Dakota sighed in annoyance before walking off behind her overprotective Father._

 ** _Every month I would focus on one story that I have on my list like this on the 20th of every month I change focus. On the 20th of July I change to do One Piece The Strawhat's Red Devil then 20th of August it would be Soul Eater Daughter Stein then 20th of September Harry Potter The Darkmore Series then 20th of October Inuyasha Sly Love and finally 20th of November BNHA Explosive Love and the cycle would begin again. So let me know even if you just like the book then I will take that as a yes thank you and let me know soon or even if you only have any suggestions for the books or my update plan._**


	2. Who Is She?

**WHO IS SHE?**

 **Dakota's POV:**

In the crisp early morning on the ocean of the East Blue, I sit in a little wooden sailboat, staring into the water below me in slightly fear of falling in. That was forever a problem when you're a devil fruit user like myself and others. Looking over the edge into the abyss as the sails catch the light breeze moving me towards my destination.

 **WHO IS SHE?**

As the boat continues to move closer, I could feel butterflies flutter in the pit of my stomach as I look at the island in front of me. It's where I am hoping to find my annoying baby brother, I have already had a run-in with an old friend who knew the brat, so it wasn't too hard to find out where he was going next.

 **WHO IS SHE?**

The boat comes to a stop at the beachside near a slope going up to the island, which seems to be covered in oil meaning someone was setting a trap. I look around hearing noise coming from the far side of the island, so I need a plan. One) so I can surprise my baby brother but I need to find him first, and well this island is small. Two) I need to know my enemy, and that means recon. I think up a temporary plan as I tie up my boat and I can hear the roar of people cheering again. Something exciting must be happening at this very moment, and I feel I know who is involved.

 **WHO IS SHE?**

Huh, sorry I forgot to introduce myself that was rude of me. I'm Dakota Le Roux, daughter of the famous idiot Red-Haired Shanks. Shanks, as you may have heard, is the captain of the Red Force and all my uncles and aunts who live on the ship, they all love me to pieces, and I love them. My favourite is my Uncle/Godfather Benn he's always too solemn which makes my Father's goofy behaviour more hilarious. So enough about my Father this is my story that I share with my younger Brothers, I love them, but I need to find my baby brother Monkey D Luffy. He's always been a troublemaker ever since I met him when I was only 11 years old with my Dad. So shall we get back to the story?

 **WHO IS SHE?**

I leave my boat docked at the beach and go for a walk around the rocky beach hearing the shouts of people getting closer as I walk closer and I know more when I hear talking, it was a young woman and a man. As a come around the corner, I see a ship with the figurehead lying on the sand and men all around it looking up the steep slope.

 **WHO IS SHE?**

I get closer, and that's when my protective nature overcomes me as I watch a man in a black suit with gloves that have long sharp knives. There's a boy around Luffy's age with a long nose as he holds a pistol at the man in the suit. He fires, but the suit taps his feet in a sequence on the ground and moves quickly out of the way using his long knife gloves encasing them around the boys head. My protective older sister gene activates, and I use my demon speed to race over to the man in the suit and extend my sharp claws before I stop short in front of them making my presence known. I could feel all their eyes on me as I take a step forward and swipe my hand downcutting at his face, he falls back to the ground with a thud from the shock and force of my hit. "Seems I just couldn't help myself," I mutter to myself and give off a sigh seeming disappointed in myself. Yeah right. I turn around to see the boy I saved looking at me with tremendous shock along with the others, and I notice one straw hat with a red ribbon around the base at the bottom of the slope, and I knew who wore it. I grin and take a dramatic bow before looking up with a broad smirk on my soft pink lips.

"What the hell was that?!" The crew below shout in shock, I look down to see Luffy pouting as it seemed he wanted to be the one to hit the suit guy.

"How did she get there so fast?!" They kept questioning.

"She just appeared!"

"But how could she do that?!"

"She really scratched Captain Kuro!" Now that I knew the name of the man I had hit. I knew who he was and well he wasn't living up to my expectations so I look at my baby brother down at the bottom of the slope and grin.

"Hey Luffy, you up for the fight?!" I shout, down at him, he tilts his head down shadowing his eyes with the rim of the straw hat and punches his arm forward before slicing it to the side in agreement. I knew he had it covered so I would have to cover his back along with the others I'm sure are apart of his small crew I had heard from my friend, I could hear the sound of soft footsteps coming from the forest behind me. I turn my head slightly to see three small children each with their own strange looks; one looked like an onion he was on the left side, then there was the apple looking one in the middle and the carrot looking one on the right. Strange little children.

"Usopp Pirate Crew…. Reporting!" They cheer before throwing down some hits on the unconscious Captain Kuro.

"You guys!" The long nose kid shouts to the three boys in panic.

"Stop that!" The blond girl cries out in worry for them too.

"Give up." The apple looking boy orders while smashing down on the unconscious Kuro.

"Kill him! Kill him!" The carrot looking boy remarks while also hitting him.

"You dare break the peace of this village!" The onion looking boy, cries out hitting the man, they all seem to naive to be really thinking straight as he was someone even when we were younger would have picked a fight with. Okay, that was a lie, but still, they are normal kids not like me in any way.

"Quit it!" The long nose orders them, and I knew from that he was Usopp, son of one of my Uncles Yasopp.

"What are those brats doing?!" One of the crewmembers below cries out, but I wasn't sure if it was for the kids or the Captain.

"What the hell are they thinking?" I hear a man say from behind me; I look to my right to see him looking worried for the children and saw him for what seems like the first time as to be fair I was focused only on Luffy and the man who I had knocked unconscious.

"Stop this!" Usopp orders his friends in fear for them, "You guys, cut it out!" He warns them, but they do finally stop out of breath from the vicious hits they had given.

"Yosh! I think he's suffered enough." The apple kid tells his friends as they breath out slowly.

"They've really pissed Captain Kuro off now!" One of the crew comments and I knew it was true; those kids were in serious trouble now. "Those stupid brats!" The kids seeming done with the former Captain run over to the blond girl and Usopp.

"Captain." They greet as they get closer to him.

"Just as we thought, Captain's fighting them!" The Carrot head announces seeming glad for that piece of information.

"Why didn't you tell us the truth?" Onion Head asks him, "Are we, insiders? No, outsider?!"

"Whatever!" Usopp snaps at them wanting them to run. "Anyways, you guys gotta get out of here!" He orders them, "Now!"

"No!" Carrot head defies him.

"We'll fight with you!" Apple head shouts at him wanting to stay.

"If we run, it brings dishonour to the Usopp Pirate Crew!" Onion head points out, they all seem so determined to stay and fight with their friend. But they soon stop seeming overly scared as Kuro gets up behind them seeming very angry with his large knife gloves pointed towards me. He looks ahead and tries to lift his very broken glasses thanks to my sharp claws, and I could see the claw marks across his face still dripping blood. He lifts his glasses up with the hilt of his hand but it just smashes the remaining glass, and he narrows his eyes in annoyance and the three children look behind them and scream in fright.

"You morons, hurry up and get outta here!" Usopp orders them, but they seem stuck in fear of the tall man, but he ignores them and goes towards Usopp and kicks him.

"Captain!" The children cry out for their friend as he lands down the slope and slides down slightly.

"Not bad…" Kuro comments looking at me as I stand near the top but with some distance between him and the swordsman. "That was a pretty good hit you throw at me there." I smile innocently at him pointing at me comically not really taking him seriously. "You! You possess the power of the Devil fruit, don't you?" He asks me, but I knew he was also questioning my baby brother.

"Yeah, the Devil Fruit," I answer smirking with my fangs showing.

"Yeah, the Rubber Fruit," Luffy answers with a smile in his voice.

"I'm a Devil Woman, and he's a Rubber Boy." I tease my baby brother knowing he hates it when I call him a boy.

"No, I'm a Rubber Man." He corrects me, but still.

"What?! That's bad news." The enemy shout in panic.

"Those things _do_ exist!"

"No wonder, he's so weird!" That one got me annoyed, and I was going to kill whoever said that about my baby brother.

"Jango! _I_ will take care of the woman." Kuro announces but I shake my head in decline.

"No thanks, I think the kid in the straw hat is up for the fight though," I tell him and I turn around walking past the swordsman who was looking at me in shock as I just kept walking down the slope as if I hadn't just pissed off Black Cat Pirate Captain Kuro. Oh well.

"Very well, Jango, please take care of Miss Kaya." Kuro orders the man in a blue hat as he moves his hands, "She _will_ write the will as planned... " I look over my shoulder to see the blond woman named Kaya who looked at Kuro in fear and shock. "Then kill her. And the three ants over there… are an eyesore!" I clench my fists in anger at the thought of the children getting hurt, and I turn to look at Luffy, he gives me a small nod agreeing with my plan to stop Jango from getting those boys and Kaya.

"Understood." Jango agrees not even hesitating at his former Captain's orders, if Luffy asked me to murder four people I would question him entirely, or anyone asks me. That is my job, but I don't call it a murder I call it an assassination. Jango takes some steps towards the swordsman, but he blocks his path with one of the swords in his hands, making him stop.

"Stop." The swordsman orders him in a gruff voice, sexy. "I won't let you pass me." I have to admire him for his resolve as he looks wore down, I knew I had to protect the kids and Miss Kaya, I need to get to them before Jango.

"Buchi!" Jango shouts and turns his head slightly to the left to a big guy dressed as a cat wrestler seems eager to get the swordsman again as jumps high into the sky. That was lame.

"Cat kill, STUMP!" Buchi screams, getting ready to take the swordsman down as he gets closer the swordsman seems worried.

"That again!" He dodges out of the way in time as Buchi lands on the space he was demolishing the ground into rubble. The ground shakes as I try to keep my balance as the rock beneath my feet breaks into pieces, Dust flies into the air covering the immediate area, I try looking around as I stand seeing the swordsman in a crouch ready for an attack. A large hand with long claws strikes out of the cloud of dust to the swordsman's side; he moves to the side with his sword taking the hit as I hear the clink from the strike. The cat heavyweight wrestler pushes the swordsman back into the side of the slope into the cliff side with a significant amount of force making more dust rise. The dust clears to the swordsman with his foot in Buchi's face as he tries to keep him away, in all the confusion Jango walks calmly and steadily up the slope past Usopp.

"Kaya!" Usopp cries out strained from his beaten form, I knew I'd have to make my move, and that was to get Kaya out of here along with the kids. I turn around to look at Luffy as he stands waiting for Kuro to make a move when Usopp calls out. "Usopp Pirate Crew!" I was loud enough to hear but still strained, but they got the message. "Listen to me!" He tells them still raising his voice.

"We won't run away!" One of them argues back not getting it.

"He's gone too far!" Another yells down to their Captain. "We'll have our revenge!"

"Protect Kaya!" Usopp orders them; he really did have the heart. The three kiddies seem shocked as they seem quiet from the beloved Captain's request. "Listen carefully… I will now… Give the most important mission… to you guys. Get Kaya away from here! Don't say you can't. Because… protecting what we cherish most as men is the reason why we formed this pirate crew!" He gives a moving declaration, and I knew I had to move even if Jango had stopped for now he was going to start moving now. I nod to Luffy who nods back at me, and I turn around facing the ascending slope and take a calm walk up passing the swordsman and Buchi in a standoff towards the kids and Kaya. I get closer to Usopp who looks up at me unknowing of my motives but seems to put some trust in me. Father like son I guess. "This is… Captain's order."

"Aye! Captain!" The three kiddies shout out their agreement and dash for the fragile girl. "Kaya, Hurry!"

"Come, this way!"

"This way!" With that, they run off into the forest giving them an advantage from both me and Jango.

"Seems I'll have to just get to the killing now," I comment, shocking everyone but Luffy, he was always too dense, but he knew I meant Jango, but that wasn't known to the others. Usopp tries grabbing my leg but I was too far away from him, and I take out my red leather dragon claw gauntlets, I tighten the straps around my wrists using the suspense. I dash forward using my demon speed to drive my elbow into the back of Jango making him fly forward onto the ground.

"You bitch!" Jango snaps at me turning his head first then his body to face me and is about to attack me, but Kuro snaps.

"Hurry up and get them, you idiot!" Kuro orders him with a glare looking over his shoulder at his crew member. Jango falters for a second before giving in to his captain's orders and turns around from us.

"Fine!" He snaps walking away and walks off; I hear another set of footsteps coming from the bottom of the slope moving towards us, I turn around to see Luffy walking up the slope with a determined look on his youthful face making him seem almost grown up.

"It's useless...I know exactly how bad Miss Kaya's condition is. She won't be able to escape Jango. You might want to go after them… _if_ you can walk past this slope that is... " Kuro declares to Usopp with his shoulder leaning back with a menacing look on his face looking up at the sky while saying this to Usopp still lying motionless on the ground. "Buchi!" He calls out as he still tries to get to the swordsman in their struggle.

"You've already lost to me once." The swordsman states looking up at the large man with shadowed eyes. "Didn't I tell you not to bother me anymore?!" He asks Buchi, but he didn't seem to be listening to him. "Outta my way!" He yells at him as he gives a kick to his under chin knocking him back and the swordsman gets out his two remaining swords putting one into his mouth and lunges towards Buchi. The swordsman slices in an X motion at the man hitting his mark, Buchi gasps from the pain with blood gushing out of the two long wounds down his chest. The fight seems to have finished for now as Buchi flies in the air from the hit over the swordsman when Luffy stops in his steps looking up. The swordsman flips his swords towards the scarabs but then throws them into the air; they come back down, he holds out two scarabs in his left hand and one in his right. They land in perfectly, quite a bit of showmanship then Buchi falls to the ground behind him, I smirk looking at the defeated form of the large man and turn seeing the look of disappointment on Kuro's face. Usopp struggles trying to get to his feet when the sounds of cries come from the forest with birds erupting into the sky.

"What… what was that?" Usopp questions, seeming worried for his friends.

"Who knows… Jango's got them covered; maybe you should take a look for yourself. However… you may be too late already." Kuro answers him not caring, Usopp grits his teeth trying harder to get to his feet.

"You bastard… you've been living under the same roof for three years… Don't you have _any_ compassion for her?" Usopp asks him shaking slightly from the pain.

"None!" Kuro answers quickly with no emotion in his voice, "Like I said, Kaya is only part of my plan. After her death, I might then thank her." He says coldly. Even I was shocked at what the Pirate was saying, and I was an assassin.

"Why you…" Usopp spits out, glaring up at Kuro.

"Hopeless Bastard." The swordsman comments looking up at the two of them as I stand just in front of him and Luffy both at the side of the slope.

"I didn't plan to save him in the first place," Luffy states his teeth bare looking angrier than before. "Usopp!" He calls up to the fallen boy gaining his attention. "You go with them and look for 'em. Leave everything here to us." He tells us, man; he's already giving me orders. So rude.

"Leave it to us!" The swordsman agrees with Luffy; I look at Usopp to see him looking down at them in shock then it turns into determination as he tries getting up again. I was growing impatient and try to walk over to him, but Luffy stops me from moving as he lands a hand on my shoulder with a look.

"Oh, you can still move?" Kuro questions, I narrow my eyes at him then take a step forward. "Not bad…" Luffy stops me again with his arm stretching as I had moved.

"Shut up!" Usopp snaps at him shaking slightly as he tries to stand up on his feet. "I won't… let you have your way! You dare betray the villagers and Kaya's feelings! Do you think you can simply do as you please?!" Usopp takes a step forward but falters forwards landing on the ground.

"Usopp!" Luffy calls out to him in worry for his new friend. Usopp lies with his face on to the side seeming more determined than ever.

"Damn… I can't move a limb." Usopp states in his shaking voice from the pain, Kuro starts laughing to himself then gives out a loud laugh at Usopp.

"You really amuse me." Kuro tells him, "I, betrayed them? Are you kidding me? Everything was planned. This isn't like playing some pirate game, where you'd go around pretending to be the captain! So stay put and don't move. Well if you do manage to catch up with Jango, you're no match for him. You'd be much safer here." Kuro taunts him, he was getting on my nerves, and I was more than a match for the weirdo.

"Even if I can't… even if I can't, I want to protect… I still want to protect them. For I am the Captain of the Usopp Pirate crew. I am a brave warrior of the sea! I won't allow you to lay a single finger on any of the villagers!" Usopp shouts out with such determination there is a short silence when the Black Cat Pirates erupt.

"What's he up to?" One questions.

"What's he yelling for?" Another asks.

"Yeah look, he's crying!" With that said they all begin to laugh at the brave boy trying to save his village.

"What a bunch of pathetic losers," I mutter looking at the laughing pirates with no souls and saw the look in Luffy's eyes before I could do anything he grabs hold of a large piece of rock and holds it above his head before throwing it down at them casting a sizeable shadow over them. They seem too busy with their laughing to notice the incoming boulder as it crashes down on them making them all scramble to get away. Luffy jumps onto the top of the rock looking down at the pathetic puss on the ground looking up at him as he glares down at them.

"What's so funny?!" Luffy demands looking with gritted teeth and a glare to match Satan, they all look up at him shaking in fear making me smile with pride at him. I knew he had it covered so I take the swordsman by his shirt and walk up to Usopp and the swordsman takes the boy over his shoulder.

"Luffy!" I call down to him gaining his attention.

"We'll take Usopp and go after the hypnotist." The swordsman announces not even looking at Luffy. "Any problems?" He asks not really caring from his tone.

"Nope! Get goin'!" Luffy agrees, giving us his precious permission and we take are leaving going up the slope.

"Sorry…" Usopp apologises looking at us on the swordsman's shoulder.

"It would've been faster if I'd gone alone." The swordsman digs at us, well I could say the same. "But without your help through the forest, I won't be able to find them." He admits, seems he's terrible with directions.

"Speak for yourself." I tease smirking at the boys; they look at me as we walk past Kuro as he stands at the top of the slope.

"Hey, you fools, who gave you permission to get past this slope?" Kuro asks us seeming like he's about to attack us.

"That would be me!" Luffy shouts up to his as he stretches his arm out to the top, distracting Kuro by going for his head, Kuro dodges out of the way to his right. "Go! Zoro, Usopp, Dakota!" He shouts up at us, "One more punch!" He retracts himself flying towards Kuro, but he vanishes out of the way as Luffy goes towards him and stops at the stop with a few miss steps. We make it into the forest, but already the swordsman known as Zoro was getting lost.

 **WHO IS SHE?**

In the forest, we hear a commotion ahead and start running with Usopp giving Zoro directions as he kept getting lost. "Hey! East, go east!" Usopp instructs aggravated as I try getting the swordsman to go the right way. "I said east, didn't you hear me?!" He asks as we run in some direction.

"How should I know!" Zoro retorts getting frustrated. "Just say left or right!"

"Then, go the other way, go to the left!" I tell him getting more frustrated at this well build swordsman.

"The other way?!" He questions looking at me in shock.

"Yes! I can smell their scents that way let's go!" I argue pulling him in the right direction, and we continue to run but this time in the right direction.

 **WHO IS SHE?**

We finally get close enough to hear the three kids call out for the girl and Usopp perks up listening to his friends in danger as Jango has found them. "Found 'em!" Usopp keeps repeating while hitting Zoro's wounds on his chest making him grit his teeth in pain.

"I'm wounded there!" Zoro warns him when we come to a stop.

"Over there!" I point over across from us to see Jango about to kill Kaya. Before Zoro can even move I speed over to the two, Jango notices me as I run over to him.

"Shit! She found us!" Jango mutters in annoyance, looking at me as I get closer to him. Kaya struggles turning her head to the side to get a better look at me. The three kids gape as I get closer in shock and Jango does something stupid. "It seems like I have to end this quickly." He moves his blade higher getting ready to kill Kaya, "Time to die!"

"I won't let that happen!" The brats exclaim in courage and dash towards him with a spade in their hands striking him in the ass. Jango yells in pain from the impact, but it soon turns into anger as the pain being to subside and he turns around to face the brats.

"You damn brats!" He grits his teeth and kicks the brats down onto the ground with force, but I was close enough now and ready my claws. "You're too late, redhead!" Jango smirks as he grabs Kaya again but I knew she'd be fine.

"I don't think so, ugly!" I taunt him as I keep running towards him and slice a branch to my right giving Usopp who's with a very unhappy Zoro a better view.

"What?!" Jango gapes looking worried for himself and Kaya gives a small smile.

"Usopp." She whispers his name as I give a small smirk to the so-called hypnotist. Usopp was taking his time as he readies his shot-making Jango tighten his grip on Kaya. "Usopp!" She strains out looking over at him.

"Captain!" The three kids exclaim in happiness at seeing their idol.

" **Special Technique: Gunpowder Star!** " Usopp exclaims releasing his slingshot, and it hits Jango in the face exploding on impact making his glasses fly off and shatter leaving him knocked out.

"Well, that was eventful," I state taking off my gauntlets off as I talk. "I mean I didn't even get to kill him, well I'm not getting paid so no harm." I turn my head seeing the swordsman Zoro take off his bandanna revealing green hair as he ties the material around his left arm. He looks at me seeming suspicious of me; I wouldn't blame him as we see Usopp before walking off back to the slope with Luffy.

 **WHO IS SHE?**

We make it to the slope to see Luffy lying on the ground with his hat over his face with a strawberry blond next to him. I sit down next to him taking my father's old hat from him; he sees that it's me and gives his usual goofy smile as I put the straw hat on my head smiling down at him. I hear footsteps approaching us to see Usopp coming over to us seeming happier now as the threat to his village has gone. "Thanks. Without you guys, I wouldn't have been able to protect this village." He thanks us though it seems the others and himself did more than me, but I don't mind getting thanks for small favours.

"What're you babbling about?" Zoro asks him, "If you didn't risk your own life for this, I wouldn't have done anything at all."

"Same here!" Luffy agrees but I knew that wasn't the complete truth for him, he always helps everyone not just for small reasons.

"All that doesn't matter now." The ginger gleams holding a large bag of gold in her arms snuggling into it. "I've got my treasure now." Usopp seems happy with that and laughs then stops looking up at the ocean in front of us.

"Thanks to this incident, I've finally decided upon something," Usopp announces looking soulfully to the vast waters.

"Huh?" Luffy questions looking up at Usopp confused, but he doesn't tell us as he walks off leaving us all a little confused.

"Well as interesting as this is, I have a few things to get done. Bye!" I chirp as I get to my feet and walk away but feel the other two looking at my back seeming confused by my presence along with suspicious.

 **WHO IS SHE?**

I walk around the village as I have finished my business at the post office and collected my pay from my last job and as I walk around I see Luffy and his two crewmates walking with Kaya. Luffy notices me and waves me over shouting out as I walk over. "Dakota! Come on! Let's go!" He keeps shouting until I reach him and we walk with Kaya in the lead.

 **WHO IS SHE?**

We come down to the beachside to see a man with fluffy white hair in a suit standing in front of a ship with a sheep figurehead, and it was beautiful. I gush along with the others at the sight of the beauty of a ship in front of us. "A caravel!" The ginger gleams looking at the ship.

"Is this really for us?" Luffy asks the man with his arms in the air to the side in surprise.

"Yes, please accept it," Kaya says in a slight pleading tone as she smiles at us kindly along with the man.

"Although it is somewhat old-fashioned, I was the one who designed it." The man announces to us. "This ship's frame and its triple-mast sails are all part of a stern-centred control system. I call it 'Going Merry'! Let me brief you on how to operate it… First, how to turn it on and adjust the power…" The man goes on, but the ginger interrupts him jumping in front of Luffy with her arms stretched out.

"Ah! No, no!" She exclaims in slight worry. "You only need to tell _me_ how to operate the ship." Luffy takes no offence as he walks towards the ship seeming happier the more he looks at it.

"Sure is a nice ship!" He compliments. "The figurehead of the ship is so cool!" I see my little sailboat near the ship and walk over getting my bag of supplies and clothes and walk back over.

"I've prepared everything that's needed to set sail aboard the ship," Kaya announces smiling.

"Thank you, that's really thankful of you!" Luffy gleams thinking about the food (meat) aboard the ship; I smack him over the head.

"It's 'really thoughtful of you' you numbskull." I scold him as he cowers down in front of me looking up at me as he rubs his head. I hear screaming coming and look over to see Usopp with a large backpack on rolling down the hill towards us. He knocks into the side of the slope pinballing off the sides down the slope.

"Usopp!" Kaya exclaims in worry for her hero as he comes towards us faster.

"What's he up to?" Luffy questions, looking up at him confused.

"Anyways, let's just stop him," Zoro argues looking with his arms crossed. "He's heading straight for the ship." As Usopp gets closer the boys lift their legs us stopping the heap but get Usopp in the face.

"T-thanks." He says looking at them with slight pain and Luffy being a dope accepts the thanks, I shake my head at him and walk off looking at the ship again.

We get onto the ship getting ready to set sail and let Usopp have his goodbye with Kaya when he shouts up to us. "You guys, take care too! I'll see you again someday!"

"Why?" Luffy asks him confused as we look down at him from the ship railing.

"Why… you're really slow, aren't you? I'll be a pirate just like you, so we might meet on the sea one day." Usopp declares looking confused at Luffy.

"What're you talking about?" Zoro asks him pointing to the ship as he leans against the railing looking over his shoulder at Usopp. "Hurry up and get on."

"We're already comrades." Luffy declares shocking Usopp as he stares up at us in his hock.

"C-captain...I'm the captain." He cheers jumping into the air with his fist in the air as he beams.

"Don't be stupid; I'm the captain," Luffy argues, and the rest of us laugh at their antics, and the other two join us in the laughter.

We take the sails down getting ready to leave, and the wind hits the sail allowing us to venture off into the vast sea ahead.

 **WHO IS SHE?**

Out in the waters near the last island, Luffy decides to celebrate. "To our new ship and new friends!" He cheers as we clash our mugs of alcohol together in our little circle.

"Cheers!" We all exclaim smiling, but it soon sobers up as Zoro looks at me with his suspicious eyes.

"Who are you anyway?" He asks me, looking me dead in the eye and the other two do the same as I just smile then gulp down some of my beer then put my mug down and look at them smirking.

"Why I'm…"

 **Hey, you amazing readers thank you for reading my FanFIc, and I hope you liked it let me know any way you like. Also, I am sorry it took so long I went on holiday, and there was no internet, and my laptop uses the internet for me to write, and I am sorry I hope you like. DEADGIRLETERNAL OUT!**


	3. Our Red Haired Assassin

**OUR RED HAIRED ASSASSIN**

 **DAKOTA'S POV:**

 _ **Out in the waters near the last island, Luffy decides to celebrate. "To our new ship and new friends!" He cheers as we clash our mugs of alcohol together in our little circle.**_

" _ **Cheers!" We all exclaim smiling, but it soon sobers up as Zoro looks at me with his suspicious eyes.**_

" _ **Who are you anyway?" He asks me, looking me dead in the eye and the other two do the same as I just smile gulping down my beer then put my mug down and look at them smirking.**_

" _ **Why I'm…"**_

"Why I'm Luffy's older sister, Dakota." I beam as I smile at them seeing the looks of shock over their faces, but Luffy just laughs as my smile turns into a smirk. "My full name is Dakota Le Roux," I add and they seem to see the difference in both appearance and name. Man where they slow.

"Yeah, Dakota's my big sister, we grew up together after her Dad, and his crew came to visit my village," Luffy tells them giggling as he smacks his thighs as he laughs.

"Wait! Who is your Father?" Usopp asks her looking at her bright red hair.

"Red-Haired Shanks, of course, can't you tell from the hair?" I jest looking at him and see the shock over the other's faces as the information sinks in. Thinking about that it was so long ago when my Dad and I visited Dawn Island and met Luffy.

 **OUR RED HAIRED ASSASSIN**

 _11 years ago I was with my Father Shanks sailing the seas with him, and his crew on my parents ship the Red Force when he decided to go to the East Blue. He called it a holiday but to me every day felt like one but "what the Captain wants he gets" as Uncle Benn tells me. I was small at 11 years old, but that didn't mean my dad wasn't overprotective of me ever since my mother was murdered on our ship seven years ago. He was super overprotective meaning guards outside my bedroom every night, and there always had to be someone with me if I was anywhere on the ship if I wasn't with my dad. Even as he was walking in front of me as he left the ship, but he would stop every ten seconds before glancing swiftly to his left and right. My Uncles and Aunts would just sigh in annoyance behind us as he did this but once we got to the bottom onto the dock, he used his cloak as a shield as he hugged me to his chest for as Dad said "protection from the unknown" but I knew he meant boys or enemies like Marines._

 **OUR RED HAIRED ASSASSIN**

 _We walked inside a bar called PARTY'S BAR, and nearly a year later we were still there enjoying ourselves. I had met Luffy a whiny (at the time) 6 now a seven-year-old boy with jet black hair who stayed in the village and always hangs out at the bar with the owner Makino. She was a beautiful green-haired woman who was a fantastic cook and dad seemed smitten with her which I knew he felt and still does guilty about._

 **OUR RED HAIRED ASSASSIN**

 _Luffy had been complaining again about coming out to sea with dad and his crew and was talking about how tough he was which was rubbish as he was a big old crybaby back then. The crew, my dad and I were all on the ship watching Luffy as he stands on the figurehead with a dagger in his hand while giving a declaration again. "Hey, Luffy! What are you trying to do?!" Dad asked him._

" _I'm really serious!" Luffy shouted down at us as he raises the dagger into the air. "I'm so pissed! I'm gonna prove it to you!" But dad wasn't taking it seriously like always just laughed at him while the rest of us watched._

" _Yeah, do it!" Dad encouraged him. Idiot. "I don't know what you're gonna do though!"_

" _Knowing Luffy, it'll be something childish!" I commented smiling knowing he'd get annoyed at what I'd said, but he just looked more determined and lowered the dagger to his face with it pointed at him this made all of us dead silent wondering what he was going to do next. He jabbed himself with the dagger on his left cheek right under his eye making us all gasp in shock and him to shout out in pain._

" _You idiot! What are you doing!" Dad yelled at the injured young boy._

 **OUR RED HAIRED ASSASSIN**

 _After Luffy had calmed down, we had taken him back to the bar with Makino cleaning the cut and Luffy was his usual self again sort of as he was trying not to cry. "Cheers, guys!" My Uncles all toasted with drinks in hand._

" _To Luffy's guts and our great journey!" One of the crew members cheered as they all drank and ate._

" _Cheers!" We all cheered along as the others were all trying to eat and drink. Dad and I were sitting at the bar with Luffy sitting in between us as we ate._

" _Oh, it didn't hurt at all!" Luffy lied as tears were threatening to spill from his eyes._

" _That's a lie. Don't do such a stupid thing." Dad scolded him._

" _It's not a lie!" Luffy argued back which was just stupid. "I'm not scared of getting hurt! " He pleaded again with my Dad, but it wasn't going to work. "Take me on your next voyage! I wanna to be a pirate too!"_

" _As if you could ever be a pirate!" Dad told him with a smile on his face. "It's a fatal flaw for a pirate to be an anchor!"_

" _I'll be okay as long as I don't fall out of the ship! Also, Dakota can't swim either, and she goes with you." Luffy argued jumping off his stool clenching his little fists._

" _Yeah, but I'm the captain's daughter, and he's too protective of me." I reasoned looking over at him._

" _Yeah, well I'm good at fighting too! I'm well trained, so my punches are like a pistol!" Luffy declared as he gives a punch but Dad wasn't impressed._

" _Pistols? Oh really?" He asked with no enthusiasm in his voice as usual as he teased Luffy._

" _What's that mean?!" Luffy yelled at him offended by Dad again; they were always like that._

" _Luffy!" My Uncles called out to him gaining his attention as he looked over to them approaching us._

" _You're in such a bad mood!" Uncle Sean asked him as him, and some others all joined together walked over to us._

" _Have fun at whatever you're doing!" Yasopp exclaimed too again drunk like the rest of the crew._

" _Yes! Being a pirate is fun!"Uncle Roo added on._

" _The sea is broad and vast!" Uncle B gleamed._

" _We're travelling various islands!" As Uncle Duke said, then Uncle Sean kicked Uncle Teppei in the face._

" _Above all, we're free!"_

" _Uncles, don't teach him such silly stuff" I scolded them as I stood in front of them and they all bowed their heads to me._

" _Sorry, Princess but it's the truth. Right?" Uncle Roo sulked._

" _Princess, why not take him on just one voyage?" Uncle Dai asked me._

" _I think so too." Uncle Rayne agreed, making Luffy more excited but Dad and I weren't having it,_

" _Then somebody trade places with him," Dad told them not even looking at them, but that seemed to sober them all up a little._

" _Okay, we're done talking. Let's drink." My Uncles gave in and walked off back to drinking from his barrel._

" _Didn't you side with me!" Luffy snapped at them getting angry gritting his teeth together._

" _In short, you're too much of a kid." Dad teased him, but I was only five years older than him as I was only 12 at the time. "I'll consider it when you're ten years older." That was how we decided on when to leave the island ourselves as Luffy was only seven then._

" _Stupid Shanks! I'm not a kid!" Luffy snapped at him growing frustrated with him. "I told you! I'm not a child!"_

" _Now, now. Don't get so mad. Have some juice!" Dad coaxed him, but it was too late to warn him about it as he rushed over gleefully accepting the offer._

" _Wow! Thanks!" He grabbed the drink taking large gulps of the orange liquid making Dad turn around laughing._

" _See, you are a kid!" Dad bellowed in laughter._

" _That wasn't fair, Shanks!" Luffy barked back but gave up and walked off with his juice. "I'm tired now." He huffed near Uncle Benn and my stool._

" _Luffy, you gotta try to understand how Boss feels." Uncle Benn advised him as he lit his cigarette._

" _First Mate!" Luffy gaped and looked up at him._

" _There's no denying that he's the head of a pirate group. He knows how tough and dangerous being a pirate is more than anybody." Uncle Benn told him, I knew he was talking about my Mother Anna and what happened to her. "Don't you see? It's not like he wants to break your spirit."_

" _No, I don't! Shanks is just making fun of me!" Luffy snorted in disbelief._

" _Anchor!" Dad called out for Luffy._

" _See!" Luffy turned around pointing at Dad again._

" _I guess you're having fun as usual," Makino commented as she looked at him and he turned on his stool with his elbows propped on the bar._

" _Yeah, I like teasing him." Dad agreed with a slight smirk._

" _Luffy, do you wanna eat something too?" Makino asked him turning to look at the small kid._

" _Uh-huh! Put it on my treasure tab!" Luffy cheered and raced over to the bar again and hopped onto the bar stool next to Dad and me._

" _The treasure tab again? That's fraud, you know?" Dad told him._

" _No, it's not! Once I become a pirate and find a treasure, I'll pay for it." Luffy argued pretty simply._

" _I'm counting on it." Makino just laughed it off as she cleaned a glass and Luffy laughed with her and began eating._

" _Shanks," Luffy asked._

" _What?" Dad answered while he and Luffy both ate._

" _How much longer are you gonna stay in this village?" Luffy asked him while trying to eat the piece of meat._

" _Let's see… We're gonna go on a couple of voyages then leave this village to head north." Dad answered him._

" _A couple of voyages, huh?" Luffy seemed disappointed at that, and both Makino and I noticed but just smiled to encourage the small boy. "I'll practice swimming while you're here!" He changed his tune._

" _That's good. Knock yourself out." Dad praised but once he said this the door to the bar got kicked in my somebody. I turned around to see the door lying on the floor, and the bar full of rowdy pirates was dead quiet. In the doorway were some rough looking men most likely bounty hunters or bandits._

" _Pardon us. So_ these _are 'pirates'. Look pretty damn dumb." The leader insulted the crew, but they did nothing as the bandits walked over to the bar moving Dad out of the way. "We're mountain bandits. But we ain't here to tear up the place. Sell us some booze." He demanded from Makino._

" _I'm sorry. I just ran out of alcohol." Makino apologises, but he doesn't seem to believe her and turns looking at the crew._

" _These pirates seem to be drinking something… what is it water?" He questioned pointing over his shoulder._

" _No, what they're drinking is the last of it," Makino explained politely._

" _My apologies. Looks like we drank the whole place !" Dad apologised as well. "You can have this if you'd like it hasn't been opened yet." The only answer Dad got was the bandit hits the bottle with his right hand smashing it over Dad. There was a mix of reactions as Makino and Luffy were shocked, the bandit lackies were pleased, the crew and I were passive._

" _Hey, you bastard! Who do you think I am? One bottle ain't even enough for a bedtime drink!" The Leader scolded Dad looking down at him as Dad has alcohol dripping down him and soaked into his clothes and hat._

" _The floors all wet!" Dad complained, being sort of selfless._

" _Look at this." The leader held up a wanted poster with his mug on with a measly 8 million bounty. Mine was just more than double, and I was only 12. "There's an eight million beri bounty on my head." He boasted filling his ego. "I've killed 56 people. They were all impudent like you. So be careful hereafter. But since we're in the mountains and you're on the sea, I don't think we'll see each other again." Dad wasn't even paying him any mind as he got off his stool and picked up the pieces of broken glass._

" _Sorry about that, Makino. Do you have a rag?" Dad asked her._

" _Oh, I'll do that!" Makino told him, and the bandit leader got ignored which didn't sit well with him as he grabbed the hilt of his sword and unleashed it hitting the bar making the plates of food fly off the bar onto Dad and the floor. Dad got knocked back slightly, and I jumped down getting away from the broken materials flying in the air, but one hit my cheek giving me a small cut._

" _Seems you like to clean. Then maybe you'll find_ this _more fulfilling." The leader jeered looking down at Dad with a large smirk hoping for a reaction. Everyone was on edge waiting to see what Dad was going to do but he did nothing, and the leader gave up and put his sword away and left the bar. "Later, wimps!" The bandits all laughed as they left and Makino and I dashed over to Dad's sides to look him over._

" _Captain, are you all right?" Makino asked him._

" _Dad, you're not hurt are you?" I asked him looking him over._

" _Oh, no problem at all." Dad declared and then began laughing, and the rest of the crew joined in laughing with their captain. Dummies. I joined in laughing knowing it was the best way and I put my hand to my cut cheek to hide it from Dad knowing his mood would change in a heartbeat._

" _Talk about lame, Boss!" Uncle Roo laughed holding his large belly,_

" _He got you good!" Uncle Yasopp joined in jabbing at Dad; he took off his hat still laughing._

" _Why are you laughing?!" Luffy demanded to know not getting the reason whatsoever. "That was so uncool! Why didn't you fight them?! You're not men- or pirates- if you laugh after something like that!"_

" _I can understand how you feel, but he only spilled booze on me," Dad explained calmly as he put his hat back on. "It's nothing worth getting mad over." Luffy didn't seem to understand then and turned around walking off. "Hey, wait, Luffy." Dad grabbed hold of Luffy's arm, but Luffy continued to walk off with his arm stretching out after him._

" _I've had it! I don't wanna be a coward like you!" Luffy seethed, and it seemed to dawn on the both of them as they looked at Luffy's arm and the crew all spit out their drinks._

" _His arm stretches!" Dad exclaimed in shock._

" _Don't tell me you…!" Uncle Dai exclaimed as all of them look on in disbelief._

" _What's going on?!" Luffy screamed out his eyes almost shooting out of his head._

" _It's gone." Uncle Roo announced looking into the small treasure box we'd kept the Gum-Gum Devil Fruit in._

" _What?!" The others all yelled circling Uncle Roo._

" _The Gum-Gum Fruit that we robbed from our enemy! Luffy don't tell me you ate a fruit like this!" Uncle Roo shrieked holding up a picture of the said fruit._

" _I-I did… it tasted so bad." Luffy answered honestly by nodding his head a little._

" _The Gum-Gum Fruit is a hidden treasure of the sea, known as a Devil Fruit. Eating it turns your body to rubber, and makes you lose the ability to swim for the rest of your life! Like Dakota!" Dad explained it was the same speech he had given me when I ate the Akuma-Akuma Fruit._

" _Eh? No way!" Luffy wailed his jaw hitting the ground and tears falling from his eyes._

" _You dumbass!" Dad scolded him loudly as I shake my head in disappointment, I was going to sell it and get a present for Dad's birthday next month._

" _Wait! Dakota ate one too!" Luffy finally caught on, and Dad looked over at me seeing my cut cheek._

" _I ate the Akuma-Akuma Fruit also known as the Devil Fruit making me a Devil GIrl," I told him smiling._

" _Yeah, Dakota is the littlest Devil you'll ever meet." Uncle Dai laughed, but not everyone was in the mood to agree._

 **OUR RED HAIRED ASSASSIN**

 _A few days later we went out to sea for a little voyage, and when we came back, no one greeted us at the port, so we got suspicious and went looking for the others to find Luffy getting bullied by the mountain bandits. The leader was holding Luffy down with his foot on his head, and others were circling the two with the Mayor and Makino facing them away from us. "No one came to greet us at the port…so I wondered why... they're the mountain bandits from before." Dad inquired looking at them._

" _Captain!" Makino exclaimed in relief as he walked between them. #_

" _Luffy! I thought your punches were as strong as pistols?" Dad teased him a little._

" _Shut up!" Luffy cursed looking up at Dad from under the bandit's foot._

" _So, you pirates are still here, huh?" The leader addressed with a look of disgust on his face and Dad walked towards them._

" _You'd best leave before you get hurt," Dad warned them as he walked closer to them._

" _Any closer and he'll shoot your head off, wimp." The leader warned Dad as he continued to walk over to them._

" _He said no closer! Don't make me blow your head off!" One of the lackies warned Dad and raised his pistol to the side of Dad's head._

" _Now that you've drawn your pistol put your life on the line." Dad recited looking at the bandit._

" _What the hell're you talkin' about?" The bandit asked Dad looking agitated._

" _I'm saying those aren't for threatening people," Dad told him pointing at the pistol as Uncle Roo sneaks to the bandit and shot him in the head, the bandit falls to the ground revealing the rest of the crew behind Dad._

" _N-now you've done it!" Another bandit exclaimed._

" _These bastards fight dirty!"_

" _Dirty?" Yasopp questioned looking at them bored with his arms crossed._

" _Cut the crap. You think you're dealing with saints or something?" Uncle Benn asked them._

" _You're looking at pirates!" Dad told them with no mercy in his voice._

" _Shut up! You got nothing to do with this in the first place!" A bandit split into the discussion._

" _Listen, bandits. Whether I'm splattered with alcohol or food, most of the time I'll just laugh and forget about it. But…! No matter what the reason, anyone who hurts my friends or daughter has to pay!" Dad scowled with a dark look over his eyes._

" _Shanks…" Luffy seemed shocked by this looking up at Dad with disbelief, but the leader of the mountain bandits just laughed at him._

" _Has to pay, huh?!" He jabbed at Dad. "Lousy pirates! Kill 'em, men!" He ordered his men and they cheer raising their swords into the air before running towards us. Uncle walked forwards taking his pistol in hand._

" _I'll handle this. Should be easy enough." Uncle Benn claimed and took his pistol out and took a drag of his cigarette._

" _Come on! Come on!" A bandit yelled out as they ran over to him and went to strike but Benn just moved out the way slightly and put his cigarette out on his forehead. The bandit fell back onto the ground yelling out in pain, and the other bandits got taken down by Uncle Benn._

" _Don't get cocky, bandit." Uncle Benn warned him holding his pistol out towards him with one hand and with the other lights his cigarette again. "If you want to fight us, then go drag a warship here or something." He provoked._

" _So strong," Luffy muttered to himself in amazement at the strength of the crew._

" _Unbelievable..." Makino marvelled at the sight before her._

" _Hold on! The kid attacked us!" The Leader deflected trying to run._

" _You're a wanted man anyway," Dad added, but the leader was too frightened and threw a smokescreen making it nearly impossible._

" _A smokescreen!" Uncle Roo stated the obvious as the others shield their eyes from the smoke._

" _Come with me, brat!" We heard the leader order Luffy as they seemed to struggle with each other._

" _Let go! Let go!" Luffy cried out, and then he went quiet, and the smoke cleared just leaving the fallen bandit lackies on the ground in front of us._

" _Luffy!" Dad started to panic. "Crap! I let my guard down! Luffy's gone! What do we do now, guys?!"_

" _Quit freakin' the hell out, Boss! It won't take us long to find him!" Uncle Roo tried calming my hysterical Father._

" _I can't believe this guy…." Uncle Benn muttered to himself, but I still heard him, Dad had run off to find Luffy even faster after Makino had told us what Luffy had done to anger the mountain bandits._

 **OUR RED HAIRED ASSASSIN**

 _We all raced to the beach after hearing Luffy screams and saw Dad and Luffy walking onto the beach; I ran over to Dad to see Luffy clutching onto Dad's shirt with tears flowing from his eyes. "I'm sorry Dakota, I didn't mean to!" Luffy bawled, and then I noticed a red liquid dripping onto the sand and looked at my Dad's left arm was missing._

" _Daddy, where's your arm!" I began to try clutching to my Dad's long leg. "Daddy, don't die!" Ever since Mother died, I've never been very good with blood from people I care about and fear they would die._

" _I'm not going to die Dakota. It was just a sea monster was going to eat Luffy is all." Dad told me and let Luffy down and picked me up with his only arm remaining._

 **OUR RED HAIRED ASSASSIN**

 _We were about to set sail leaving the small village for the grandline again, and we were saying goodbye to Luffy for the final time. "Shanks, aren't you gonna come back?" Luffy asked him._

" _No, it was a long stay, but now we part ways," Dad told him not looking at the small boy._

" _Yeah, I won't ask you to take me anymore." He said. "I've decided to become a pirate on my own now!"_

" _I wasn't gonna take you anyway!" Dad smirked turning looking at Luffy. "You'll never be a pirate!" He teased him._

" _I will be!" Luffy shouted at him in determination like always. "Someday, I'm gonna gather a crew every bit as good as yours, and I'm gonna find the greatest treasure in the world, and I'm gonna be the King of the Pirates!" He declared with fierce determination._

" _You're gonna surpass us, huh?" Dad hummed and took hold of his precious strawhat and took it off. "In that case.." He put in on Luffy's head shocking us kids as I never thought I would see the day my Dad would let go of one of his most precious treasures. "...I'll leave this hat with you. It's dear to me." Luffy was crying heavily, and I go to leave with Dad, but he puts his hand to my head stopping me. "Dakota you heard Luffy he wants to surpass my crew and me. Help him and grow up as strong as your Mother." He was leaving me with Luffy without warning; tears were flowing down my cheeks as I saw his eyes glass up too and the rest of the crew._

" _I promise, I'll look after Luffy and make sure he becomes the King of the Pirates and avenge Mummy!" I vowed then and there for everyone to hear. Dad looked shocked at me but knew he had no control over this and turned around leaving me with a crybaby._

" _Come bring it back to me someday! Once you've become a great pirate!" Dad ordered and turned around to give us one last look._

 _They all went aboard the ship I had called home and began to set sail; I watched them holding onto Luffy's hand as we looked on the dock as he sailed away. "Don't worry Luffy I'll train you for the next five years to become the strongest pirates! So you'll become the King of the Pirates!" I proclaimed, and he sniffled a little more and looked up at me smiling widely._

" _Yeah!" He agreed and over those years I trained Luffy to become stronger, but I had left when I turned 17 and began my little adventure. Oh, I lost track sorry. Here's the rest of the conversation._

 **OUR RED HAIRED ASSASSIN**

"Your Father is Red-Haired Shanks!" Usopp exclaims, and he smiles at me. "Then you know my Dad?" He inquires, and I nod.

"Yep, Uncle Yasopp, man he loves testing his shooting skills and drinking then when he's drunk he'd talk about you. Remember that Luffy when you would grumble as he told you and he put a glass beer mug on your head!" I laugh making the others laugh while Luffy pouts not liking my little jab.

"So you were close to my dad?" Usopp asks as he must have caught the Uncle Yasopp part.

"Yeah, everyone on my Dad's crew is my Uncles and Aunts especially his first mate he's my Godfather," I tell them.

"Yeah, Benn Beckman's so serious like all the time." Luffy laughs and falls back off the barrel onto the deck. "So Dakota what'd you do for the last five years?" He asks me as I was that much older we had all agreed when my younger brothers or I turned 17 years old we would leave the island to begin our adventures.

"Getting assassination jobs and my bounty's gone up again," I tell them as I check my nails.

"WHAT?!" They exclaim in shock with their mouths agape even Luffy looks a little shocked at me.

"Well once I left Dawn Island I set sail and just started doing odd jobs then I perfected my skills in the assassination business and well it's just carried on from there, and well my bounty went higher since I was 11. I think it's around 30 million now. So what about you Luffy what have you been up to?" I ask him, and he begins to tell me all about his adventures from when he set sail till now, how he met Zoro and Nami and even Usopp. He always did know how to find adventure.

I sit with the others as we talk and notice the swordsman Zoro looking at me from the corner of my eye. "I'm not here to kill any of you. You don't even meet my requirements either, and you don't have bounties yet. Besides I promised Luffy, I'd join his crew once he became a pirate." I tell him and smirk, he seems content with my answer and goes back to drinking his booze.

"How many have you killed?" The girl I now know as Nami asks me.

"Let me think... I think it's around 100 people I think but the right number is on my bounty." I answer the look of shock was starting to get boring. "So where are we going now?"

 **Hey, another Chapter out. Hope you like, please let me know what you think of the new chapter anyway you want so let me know and I will be doing the next chapter. DEADGIRLETERNAL OUT!**


	4. Bonding, Trouble & The Baratie

**BONDING, TROUBLE & THE BARATIE**

 **Dakota's POV:**

We were sailing out in the sea, I know it's obvious but anyway we were all doing our own thing on the small ship as Zoro is snoozing again, Nami is reading over some maps, Usopp is staring out into the ocean in his own little world, and Luffy is goofing off. I was playing with my playing cards in just a yellow bikini top and denim shorts showing off my tattoo of roses on my right shoulder, I got them a few years back as a tribute to my Mother as they were her favourite. I also wore my favourite black trilby hat with my red, yellow, blue and white bead bracelets that are symbols of my brothers and mine's relationship; I was playing solitaire when Usopp begins talking to himself. "Foolish Pirates… you still dare to attack the Going Merry knowing it's led by the great Captain Usopp?!" He jumps down behind me swinging his wooden stick he'd found earlier around, the slight breeze of his swings move my playing cards around ruining my game! "A violent battle ensues!" He comes out of his delusion and sees the rest of us not paying him any mind and Zoro gives off a loud yawn. "Hey, can't you guys… pay some attention to people?"

"IT'S DONE!" Luffy explains startling Usopp as Luffy jumps up behind him holding a piece of black material. Luffy turns around holding the piece of black material showing a terrible pirate flag attempt, but he smiles seeming pleased with himself. "Look, it's our pirate flag! "After Usopp and Dakota joined us, we now have five people. So we need our own mark." We all look at our so-called mark with mixed feelings that were all bad.

"That is… our mark?" Zoro asks Luffy who grins broadly not seeming fazed at all by the terrible attempt.

"What do you think? Nice isn't it?" Luffy asks us, still giving us all a big grin.

"A pirate's flag is a symbol of death and terror," Zoro explains the meaning of a pirate flag.

"I do feel the terror, but it's the terror of your talent," Nami adds on, I knew it wouldn't hurt Luffy's feelings, but I didn't like what she said, but still she wasn't wrong.

"Small children would just run off laughing," I add in too looking at the poor excuse of our pirate flag.

"You should have discussed it with me first. How can you forget this genius painter?" Usopp pretends to scold us smiling slightly and almost seems over proud of my abilities.

"Genius painter?" Luffy questions as we all look at the long nose boy.

"I've had 50 years of experience painting on walls. When it comes to painting, no one does it better than me." Usopp boasts we'll see about that.

"Incredible, 50 years!" Luffy buys into the lie.

"That means… you are an old man!" Zoro mocks him.

"He does look good for his age," I smirk playing along.

"Maybe he has 5 or 6 grandchildren already." Nami too mocks his outrageous lie.

"That's even more incredible!" Luffy falls further.

"Hey!" Usopp snaps slapping Luffy slightly and soon gets to work on our mark as I do the same.

"Now, take a look at this masterpiece," Usopp announces and holds up his mark with a skull with a long nose and a slingshot. "Tada!"

"Who told you to make your own flag?" Luffy asks Usopp annoyed at him and the two boys hit him over the head.

"Yeah well, that's nothing," I smirk and show them my masterpiece of the flag I knew Luffy wanted. They all look with mouths agape, and Luffy begins clapping, and I hand it over to him. "It's yours Luf but don't ruin it." I knew he wanted to keep it for himself; I knew my brother well. "Come on Usopp let's do it properly now," I warn him lightly.

"Right!" He yells and begins painting again and comes up with the right mark and shows it off to the rest of us. "Well, I guess it's something like this."

"Eh, this is pretty good." Nami marvels over the flag mark.

"That's good; I like it." Luffy agrees still holding onto the flag I had done for him in his hand.

"So, this is our mark from now on eh." Zoro chimes in crouching down next to me.

"Okay... Usopp, paint this on the sail!" Luffy orders him pointing at the mainsail above us, and he looks up too.

"I didn't know you could draw so well Dakota." Zoro compliments and looks up at me and I smile.

"There's more about me that you don't know yet," I smirked looking down at him, he seems at ease more around me since I was an open book anything you'd want to know about me I would tell them. There are no secrets among crew members.

Usopp finishes the mark on our mainsail, and we all look up at it. "Okay, it's finished! Now the pirate ship Going Merry is complete!" Luffy laughs and looks at the rest of us as we stand in front of him.

 **BONDING, TROUBLE & THE BARATIE**

It's been a day since we had made our pirate flag and found an island full of cool creatures with a man in a box who looks after the animals but at the moment we were all resting when a loud crash comes from behind me. I turn around from my new book to see my baby brother with a crate. "What?" We ask as we look startled at the rubber boy.

"Whew, this is heavy," Luffy complained, he was stupid sometimes, if it's heavy why carry the crate?

"What is that?" Nami asks him as she stops reading her map.

"I found these in the storage rooms." Luffy answers but doesn't answer the question but opens up the wooden crate that had red paint spelling out 'DANGER!' on the side.

"Aren't those cannonballs?" Nami asks looking at them, I pick one up and throwing it into the air a few times before putting it back.

"I figured we could practice using our hard earned cannon," Luffy merely says, and I go over to Zoro seeing that he's still snoozing.

"Then I'll take care of it," Usopp tells Luffy and begins to reminisce or lie. "I think I was three...travelling halfway around the world, riding on a cannonball…" But Luffy wasn't paying any mind as he looks over the cannon.

"How do you use this?" He asks scratching at the strawhat.

"Listen to me!" Usopp snaps looking over at the rubber idiot.

"Hey, Zoro! Do you know how to use this?!" Luffy shouts over to us, but Zoro's still sleeping soundly.

"He's been sleeping for a while," I tell Luffy and go back to reading my book as I had no interest in the cannon.

"No fun." Luffy sulks pouting a little, but Nami tries lifting his spirit.

"If we go a little south, there's a perfect place for practising," Nami tells him as she looks over the map in hand.

"Really? Let's go, let's go!" Luffy cheers, and we make heading so the boys can practice.

"Hey, can you shoot cannons as well as I can?" Usopp asks trying to boast. "People call me the cannon master… Listen!"

 **BONDING, TROUBLE & THE BARATIE**

We finally find the place Nami was talking about and the boys begin to load the cannon, but Luffy has the first go missing the mark, but the loud boom of the cannon startles the sleeping swordsman. "I missed," Luffy states the obvious as we watch on.

"What are you guys doing?" Zoro asks the two boys below us as he sits up next to me, he turns to me seeing as I was looking over I had abandoned my book for now.

"We're practising shooting the cannon." Luffy answers. "But it's harder than I thought it would be."

"I told you, let me show you how it's done," Usopp tells him pointing towards himself with a big smile on his face. "Eh, with the current distance… this is about right?" Usopp positions the cannon as he mutters to himself and fires the cannonball at the column of rock. "Fire!" The cannonball sails through the air and hits the target right in the middle, dust flies from the impact and the top falls to pieces down into the water below.

"Amazing!" Luffy marvels looking at the decimated bile of rocks falling below the vast waters. "You hit it with one shot!"

"It really hit the target! Of course, when it comes to aiming, I know everything. So you believe me now?" Usopp asks seeming full of himself even though just a second ago he didn't believe it either.

"You're the _Sniper_ from now on." Luffy awards him nodding his head erratically; I look over to see Zoro glancing down at them with a smile on his face seeming content with their antics.

"What? I'm not the Captain?" Usopp asks seeming disappointed.

"I'm the Captain!" Luffy objects annoyed at the long nose sniper.

"They already seem close, must be the hat," I comment looking over at them next to Zoro, he looks at me and seems confused. "Didn't Luffy tell you, the hat. It was my Dad's, but he gave it to Luffy when he left me at Luffy's island." I explain and look down at the two arguing boys.

"Yeah, I remember you saying that Usopp's Dad was on your ship?" He inquires, and I nod.

"Uncle Yasopp, he's fun to be around, though all my Uncles are," I tell him and know this crew was getting more and more interesting by the second I spent with them.

"Seems nice, why didn't you go back to them once you left the island?" Zoro asks me, I always wanted to go back, but then I promised my Dad I would help my baby brother fulfil his dream and my own.

"I promised my Dad I'd help Luffy become King of the Pirates and fulfil my own dream. Till that happens, I'm just going to have to wait." I answer and look at him, and I have to ask. "What's your dream?"

"To become the worlds greatest swordsman." He answers in a beat, and I smile, I guess my Uncle will have a good fight on his hands once they meet but for now, I hope it's not too soon.

"I hope you fulfil your dream Zoro," I tell him and walk off smiling, he really was interesting.

 **BONDING, TROUBLE & THE BARATIE**

An hour later we'd got bored, and all came inside to the kitchen to laze about, Zoro was sitting against the fridge while the rest of us sit around the table and the boys were still going on about the position of Captain. "That's okay; I'll let you have that position for now. However, if you do a poor job, I'm gonna replace you." Usopp so graciously offers. If anyone were Captain next, it would be someone who spent 11 years on a ship and the daughter of a very famous pirate. Me.

"That's fine. Before that, I've been thinking. Before going to the Grand Line, we need to fill one more position." Luffy explains I knew what was coming next.

"Right, and we have such a nice kitchen!" Nami compliments, looking around the room. It was nice, but that wasn't what Luffy was thinking about I bet. "If you pay me, I'll do it."

"It's an important position for any long voyages." Zoro cuts in but they were still on their own marks but not Luffy's.

"That's right; it's someone that we must have on a pirate ship!" Luffy exclaims thinking they were thinking the same as him. "A musician!"

"Are you an idiot?" Zoro asks him annoyed as I couldn't help laugh at my baby brother's idiocy.

"What the hell do you think sailing is?!" Nami hollers at our Captain in disbelief.

"I thought you were actually saying something constructive for once." Usopp sighs in disappointment in our Captain.

"To be honest Luf, I thought you'd be thinking with your stomach for once." I laugh, I mean he usually thinks about his stomach, and well he'd need a good cook to keep up with his hunger.

"But pirates have to sing." Luffy tries to defend himself, but it cut short as we all hear a loud crash on the deck.

"Come out you pirates!" A loud, angry voice shouts on the deck gaining our attention and Luffy goes off opening the door with me behind him as the _bodyguard_ of the crew.

 **BONDING, TROUBLE & THE BARATIE**

Looking out the door I see a lone man wearing sunglasses and a blue hoodie, he was brandishing a sword, but it wasn't very intimidating to look at, and I notice a tattoo on the side of his face that was the kanji for sea. "What, what?!" Luffy demands as we look down at the stowaway. "Who are you?"

"Shut up!" The man snaps at us. "It doesn't matter who I am!" With that said he swings his sword down on the bannister in front of Luffy and me, I use my demon speed picking up Luffy and jump out of the way onto the deck near the stowaway. "I've killed a countless number of pirates. But a no-name pirate like you dares try to kill my partner?!" He accuses us but I jump us away again as he swings his sword down onto the deck where we stood.

"What do you mean, partner?" Luffy asks the stowaway clueless; I'd guess it was when Usopp hit the rock column earlier, and he and his partner were there. "I don't know what's going on? But don't damage our ship!" He demands and stretches his arms out to the stowaway grabbing his head and flips him over our heads into the opposite wall. The stowaway lands on the wall upside down with a loud crash and slides down onto the floor with defeat.

"Al-almost had them…" He groans out as he slides down to the floor.

"What was that?" I question looking at the two of them.

"Hey, you! Aren't you Johnny?" I hear Zoro shout down to the knocked out man on the deck.

"Who is it? Calling out my name with no respect!" The man named Johnny snaps looking up at the voice to see Zoro looking down at him from the railing and springs up looking up surprised. "Big Bro Zoro!" He yelps in shock.

"So it is you, Johnny." Zoro clarifies seeming pleased almost.

"You're on a pirate ship, Big Bro?" Johnny demands in a shaky voice. "W-why?"

"What's wrong? Isn't Yosaku with you? You're not together?" Zoro asks his friend I guess but ignores the question with asking his own. Johnny tells Zoro to follow him, and they go over to the side of the ship looking over the side, I could still hear them.

"Y-Yosaku is…" Johnny cries, and Zoro awkwardly pats him on the shoulder as his friend cries over their partner. I'd had enough now and wanted to know what was going on and walk over to see over the side is a small boat with a man bleeding. We get the injured Yosaku onto our ship and take a look over him, I'd thought so.

"He's ill right Johnny?" I ask him.

"He's ill?" Zoro asks his friend looking down at him.

"Yosaku is… he was perfectly fine until a while ago… then he grew pale and started to lose consciousness… I have no clue why. Lately, his teeth started falling out… and his old wounds have started to bleed again… I just don't know what to do anymore! So I took him to that rocky island to let him rest, but… then your ship attacked us!" Johnny cries with tears falling from under his sunglasses; I look at the boys shaking my head as they look at the poor man shocked.

"I-i'm sorry!" They both apologies bowing to him, but he seems to have calmed down slightly.

"If all problems could be solved with an apology, we wouldn't need the police." Johnny comments and I felt like adding or me, but the boys grow scared of what they had done. "Isn't that right? Partner!" Johnny starts crying more again. "Big Bro is he… going to die?"

"Are you stupid?" Nami asks as she walks towards us and examines the sick Yosaku.

"What?" Zoro demands, looking at her, he still doesn't trust her full yet, and I knew he only trusts me a little more than her. As she examines Yosaku, Johnny stops her grabbing her arms and spits in her face as he yells at her.

"What are you…? What're you doing to my partner here? I'll kill you!" Nami having enough she pushes his face away from hers and takes charge.

"Luffy! Usopp!" She calls out to them, and I look to see them slightly crying from the guilt. "There are some limes in the storage, aren't there?" She asks them and doesn't get a response. "Are you listening? Bring 'em to me, right now!" She snaps them out of it, and they scramble to the door, pushing each other out of the way trying to get there first or just away from the fuming Nami first.

"Aye! Aye!" They exclaim as they fight.

"Get out of my way!" Luffy yells as he pushes the long nose boy to the side.

"You get out of my way! Hey, you're the one in _my_ way!" Usopp yells back and pushes the rubber boy away, but they both fly forward onto the floor. They soon come back with a barrel of limes in hand, Nami instructs them to put the lime juice in Yosaku's mouth.

"He's got scurvy, huh Nami?" I ask looking on; she nods her head in confirmation.

"Scurvy?" Johnny asks, I can't believe he sails and doesn't know about such illnesses.

"We've got to him in time; he should recover in a few days," Nami explains, and that seems to excite Johnny.

"A-are you sure, Big Sis?! I'm really grateful for Big Sis's…" Johnny spits excited but gets cut off as Nami pushes his face away from her, having enough of spit flying onto her face.

"Stop spitting all over me, please," Nami orders him and gets serious and starts explaining what was wrong with Yosaku. "In the past, it was an incurable disease that plagued sailors."

"Come on, drink up.." The two boys mutter to the ill man.

"But now, it's just a minor problem, caused by the lack of Vitamin C. In the past, ships couldn't carry enough fresh fruit to avoid it." She continues to explain, and the boys begin stuffing the limes into the unconscious man's mouth with force. Idiots.

"You sure are something." Luffy cheers looking up at us but looking at Nami with a cheerful smile. "Just like a doctor and Dakota."

"I've always known you were smart women. Yep, that's right." Usopp chimes in, I was going to take offence, but Nami snaps.

"You should of at least know what _this_ was! It could happen to you sooner or later you know!" She yells at them then Yosaku spits out the limes and sits up looking better, the two men celebrate spinning around and cheering.

"It's working! He's recovering!" Johnny cheers as the two spin around. "Welcome back, partner!"

"You don't recover that quickly!" Nami yells, and Yosaku and Johnny stop their little celebration and turn to face us.

"Pardon us for not introducing ourselves…" They say together as they strike a strange pose.

"My name is Johnny." He introduces as he poses with his fists clenched together one leaning against his cheek with the kanji for sea and the elbow resting on the other arm which crosses over his chest.

"And I'm Yosaku." He introduces in his pose similar to Johnny's pose, but he had his hand holding a cigarette.

"We are the pirate hunters!" They say together; I knew they were bounty hunters, but still, they seem weak.

"Big Bro Zoro used to be one of us too," Johnny explains how they knew Zoro. "It's a pleasure to meet you all." Zoro walks over to them passing the rest of us.

"I never expected to see you guys here!" Zoro tells them seeming pleased nevertheless.

"But, I'm even more surprised. The pirate hunter Zoro has become a pirate, himself." Johnny replies slightly shocked.

"I guess." Zoro just shrugs it off and seem to give a special greeting.

"Big Bro." Johnny takes his hand in his, and Yosaku struggles to try to reach for their outstretched hands and falls to the floor looking terrible again. "Hey, partner?!" He panics looking at his friend.

 **BONDING, TROUBLE & THE BARATIE**

We got Yosaku into the boy's bedroom to lie down and recover as the rest of us sit in the kitchen doing our own thing. Such as I was reading, Nami was sorting out her maps, Zoro was napping or just resting against the wall, and Luffy and Usopp were chatting, and Johnny worrying about his partner in the boy's room. "Let this be a lesson for us," Nami warns the others lightly while still writing.

"Yeah." Zoro agrees not looking up. "These kind of things can happen on a long voyage."

"Especially since we don't have much room for food on this ship," Usopp adds in.

"Speaking of which, we should get somebody who'd know about this dietary business," I tell them as Luffy munches on a piece of bread.

"Dietary, eh… I've got it! We need a sea cook!" Luffy exclaims making us all look in surprise at our idiot Captain. "Let's go look for a sea cook!"

"I get it! Then we'd have all sort of delicious food to eat!" Usopp chimes in getting excited.

"EX-ACT-LY!" Luffy cheers and sticks his tongue out, probably thinking about all the food he wants the cook to make him. Mostly meat I bet.

"If you're looking for such a cook, I know where you could go," Johnny tells us.

"Yeah, that's the spirit! So, where would that be?" Luffy asks the pirate hunter.

"But it's pretty close to the Grand Line, and the man Big Bro's been hunting for, Hawk-Eye is around there too," Johnny says and walks over to stand in front of the swordsman, man he was too determined as he looks up with a smirk clutching at his swords. "It's direction is… North-northeast!" He points his arm in the direction, and we all smirk thinking of what's to come, and we set a course for our destination.

 **BONDING, TROUBLE & THE BARATIE**

We sail all night and finally, it's morning, Nami is so much trouble when she sleeps always muttering about her precious treasure. It gets annoying. Fast. So I slept for a few hours before training a little, and now everyone was awake, and Johnny finally tells us our destination's name. "Our destination is… the floating restaurant… Baratie!" He exclaims, and it comes into view it was a floating sea restaurant with a fish head and tail at either end, it looks quaint. Every one of us looks at the restaurant in amazement and awe as the two boys look with drool mostly Luffy though. "Whatcha guys think, huh?"

"Oh, that's a humongous fish!" Luffy exclaims drooling more.

"Isn't it amazing!" Nami gushes with sparkles in her eyes.

"It really is." Usopp agrees, pumping his fists into the air.

"Amazing!" Luffy cheers jumping on his toes and I laugh at their joyful antics, but that cuts short when a Marine Ship warning horn cuts into our tranquil cheers and the ship pulls up beside us.

"What?! Way out here?!" I hear Yosaku yelp, I huff in annoyance at the sight and knew we were going to be in trouble now. "A Marine ship?!"

"It didn't come all this way just to attack us, did it?" Usopp questions, looking slightly worried.

"No, you're not known pirates, and they don't know that I'm here," I answer looking at the ship with narrowed eyes.

"I smell trouble," Zoro mutters with his hand gripping the railing tightly.

"Just out of the blue?" Nami ponders looking at the larger ship and Johnny badly sneaks away from the rest of us and a man on the other ship walks over to the side.

"I've never seen your pirate mark before." The Marine addresses us, and Johnny denies being pirates as the two pirate hunters cower behind the door. The Marine smacks his hand down showing off his iron bar with screws lined along his knuckles. "I'm the Marine Lieutenant Iron Fist Fullbody! Hey, who's your Captain? Show yourself!" He demands seeming more aggressive than needed.

"I am Luffy!" He shouts his introduction.

"I am Usopp!" He adds in though he didn't need to.

"Our pirate mark was just made yesterday!" Luffy states with confidence.

"I was the one who made the pirate mark!" Usopp adds trying to gain some credibility and Luffy seems annoyed by the long nose sniper.

"What's wrong with you people?" The Marine Lieutenant inquires but still has a smirk on his lips, but it turns into a frown when his eyes dart to the side with the two pirate hunters. "I've seen those two before though. You claim to be pirate hunters, don't you?" He asks Johnny and Yosaku who seem startled at the attention.

"W-what?" Johnny spurts out clenching his fists in anger.

"It looks like you finally caught yourselves some." The Marine Lieutenant taunts them.

"We are…" Johnny spits out, but the Marine Lieutenant just laughs at them.

"This is too good." He smirks then a beautiful woman with light blond hair steps out wearing a wine coloured dress from behind the pink haired Marine Lieutenant in the sharp suit.

"Hey, let's go now." The blond beauty purs trying to distract the Marine Lieutenant.

"Sure." He agrees, and they link arms, but Johnny gains their attention as he talks while pulling out Wanted Posters from his inside hoodie pocket.

"I'll show you just what it is we pirate hunters do!" Johnny seethes and throws all the Wanted Posters across our floor, but the cocky Marine Lieutenant and his date just walk off. The Lieutenant gives his men an order but continues walking off, and something seems to catch Nami's eyes, but I couldn't help but feel as if something dangerous was coming our way and soon. "He simply ignored us!" Johnny sulks.

"We'll get back at him!" Yosaku snaps and Nami walks over to them.

"What's… all this?" She asks them and kneels down looking at the Wanted Posters scattered on the deck.

"These are all people with bounties on their heads, Big Sis Nami," Johnny explains and gasps as he had caught himself too late and holds his hands over his mouth and Yosaku looks worried for his partner. Nami doesn't react as she stares at one of the Wanted Posters in her hands, I can't get a good look, so I walk over and see a familiar face staring at me. It was me. I pick up my Wanted Poster and smile, I really did look good for 17, and I haven't changed that much either. "It means that if we get 'em, we'd get the money offered on their Wanted Posters."

"Don't you think it's good business, Big Sis?" Yosaku asks her and Johnny slaps his hand over his mouth, but he had already called her the name. Nami seems in her own dark world as she looks at the Wanted Poster, I dart my eyes to see it's on Arlong the Fishman. Strange. She crumples up the piece of paper and seems as if she's shaking, but in fear or anger, I'm not too sure. I hear the sound of cannons being positioned and turn my head to the side to see the Marine Ship's cannon aiming for us.

"This is bad!" Usopp panics. "Their aiming right at us!" As he says this the cannon fires the cannonball hurtling towards us fast, smoke from the cannon mixes with the little explosion with a bright light and Luffy goes into action.

"Leave it to me! **GOMU GOMU NOOOO-** " The cannonball goes straight for Luffy as he stretches out his arms to the side holding on and gets pulled back by the force of the cannonball. " **SLINGSHOT!** " As Luffy goes further out his hold on Merry's head slips and he moves to the right more then releases the cannonball towards the sea restaurant, and he goes flying into the back of Merry's head. Idiot. I go over and see the damage done by the cannonball and Luffy being dragged by two chefs into the room that the damage is the worst.

It's been some time since our Captain was dragged off into The Baratie and Johnny and Yosaku were fixing the damage they had done to our ship while Nami and Usopp are waiting for Luffy. Zoro is napping, and I am getting dressed in a floral skirt that reaches my mid thighs and a black crop top then one of my leather jackets. I need new clothes. I walk out mine and Nami's room to see them still waiting for Luffy. "Why don't we go see how he's doing and get something to eat. My treat." I tell my crewmates, they look at me, and I turn to the two pirate hunters. "You can guard the ship can't you?" I purr leaning slightly forward, and they nod their heads in agreement. I hear a scoff from behind me and turn to see Zoro turning his head away from me.

"Yes, food!" Usopp cheers, jumping up and running off.

"As long as I don't have to pay, I'm good." Nami agrees and goes to join Usopp; I look at Zoro who grunts in the form of agreement.

 **BONDING, TROUBLE & THE BARATIE**

We take Johnny, and Yosaku's little boat and the boys paddle us over to the sea restaurant with Nami and I gossiping about the food that lies behind those doors. Zoro seems to be ignoring us, but Usopp adds in a few comments every so often.

We reach the restaurant, and Usopp jumps onto the deck, I throw over the rope, and he begins tying it securely to one of the posts when we hear a loud series of crashing sounds come from inside. Probably Luffy the Idiot.

 **Another chapter is done, YEAH! So now that's done what do you think, please, leave a comment if you wish and I will begin writing again! See ya, DEADGIRLETERNAL OUT!**


	5. Trouble At The Baratie

**TROUBLE IN THE BARATIE**

 **DAKOTA'S POV:**

Zoro opens the door of the restaurant to stunned customers all looking over to the Marine Lieutenant Fullbody, his beauty of a date and a blond in a suit holding the Marine in the air by his hand. "Is this a fight or something?" Zoro questions, looking at the scene in front of us with a bleeding Fullbody.

"Don't go ruining our food." The smoking blond threatens the Marine - when I mean smoking I mean he's smoking a cigarette he's not my type -. "Messing with a cook of the sea is a good way to get yourself killed… remember that well." Suddenly a big guy with pink hair dressed as a chef walks over to the Marine and the suit guy not looking happy at all.

"You're at it again, Sanji?" The guys ask as he walks towards them. "What're you doing to our customer? Isn't that a Marine Lieutenant?"

"Gotta problem, you crappy cook?" Sanji turns his head asking not seeming to care. "Don't talk to me that way!"

"A crappy cook like you has no right to call _me_ crappy!" The cook snaps back at the younger man. "To a restaurant, customers are everything! Beating up our valuable customers, what're you thinking?"

"Customer or not, it's no different. This guy not only ruined our dishes, he insulted the Chef!" The man named Sanji replies and releases the injured Marine Lieutenant to the floor where he sits looking wounded. "That's why I thought I should teach him a lesson." I couldn't blame him he's not wrong, the cooks on my Dad's ship were much worse than this if you left a crumb on your plate. We continue to watch the exchange from the door with interest.

"What kind of restaurant is this? Do you treat all your customers like this? How does it even stay in business? I'll destroy it! I'll destroy your precious little restaurant! I'll destroy it! I'll contact my superior right now!" The humiliated Marine Lieutenant threatens them as he sits on the floor of the said restaurant, this seems to enrage Sanji as he looks down at Fullbody.

"I guess that means I can't let you leave this place alive." Sanji threatens him directly scaring the Marine as he looks up at the smoking cook and he walks towards Fullbody with intent.

"Stop it, Sanji!" The other cooks call out trying to hold back the younger male as he tries to reach the Marine.

"Let go of me!" Sanji demands as he tries to pull free of them. "He started it!"

"Stop it! Stop fighting, Sanji!" The cooks shout at him as they struggle for control.

"Just who do you think you are?! Huh?!" Sanji struggles as he reaches his arm out towards Fullbody who shakes with terror at the cook. Suddenly the ceiling cracks open and Luffy and an old man fall through a hole they'd made and crash onto the floor with a thud startling the customers and cooks.

"What's he done now?" I groan as we stand in the doorway of the restaurant and Usopp tries getting a better look from his spot.

"What is it this time?" Someone asks.

"Man, that surprised me!" Luffy whines as he gets up next to the old man who seems shaken by the sudden fall and injured most likely from the Marine's cannonball attack earlier.

"O-owner Zeff? What's going on?" A cook asks the old man who'd fallen from the ceiling.

"Damn it, see what you did?! You broke my ceiling! It's all your fault, boy!" The Owner snaps at my baby Brother.

"You broke it yourself, old man!" Luffy snaps back at him annoyed.

"What are you doing, Boss?!" A cook calls out as he and the others struggle to constrain the sue chef. "Leave him and help us stop Sanji here!"

"Hey, Sanji!" The old man shouts turning away from his glaring contest with Luffy, the old man walks over to the struggling cooks. "Were you fighting in my restaurant again, you ingrate?"

"Shut up, old fart!" Sanji retorts stopping in his struggle from the number of cooks, and they let him go.

"What?! Who do you think you're talking to?! You wanna destroy my restaurant?! You insolent boy!" The old man snaps and uses his wooden peg leg to kick Sanji around the face hard making the younger man falter. "You're another one! Get the hell outta here!" He turns to the Marine and kicks him in the face with his peg leg knocking him back onto the floor lying on his front.

"You got that?! The customers are God?!" Patty snaps at Sanji, but he doesn't seem to care.

"Only the ones who can stand _your_ cooking." Sanji sneers not looking at the larger cook.

"Patty, Sanji! If you wanna fight, don't go doing it in front of our customers!" The Owner warns them then I hear footsteps behind us and move out the way hiding my face from the incoming Marine.

"L-Lieutenant! Lieutenant Fullbody!" He calls out and runs over to the doorway. "We've got a problem!"

"Seems lively here," I comment looking at my fellow crewmates who agree, I look at the Marine who seems scared of something.

"The underling of Pirate Krieg has escaped!" The Marine exclaims with blood dripping down the side of his face; this seems to surprise the Marine Lieutenant.

"What?!"

"We thought he could've given us a lead on Krieg… we've already lost seven of our men." The Marine explains.

"That's ridiculous! When we got him three days ago, he was about to starve to death! And we haven't fed him yet, have we?" Fullbody objects, seeming scared of this underlying of the loser Don Krieg.

"The d-dreaded Don Krieg Pirates?!" Customers quake in terror at the mere mention of the pirate.

"Isn't he supposedly the most powerful pirate of the East Blue?" A customer questions and I can't help but snicker, it was pathetic.

"What's so funny?" Usopp asks me, and I turn to look at him seeing him too scared, but there was no reason.

"Well, they're scared of Don Krieg. I mean he's weak if you ask me." I tell him and see him looking at me now in fear too. "I could kill him easily it wouldn't be worth my time."

"You really are a Killer, huh?" He asks looking at me, and I just shrug. It's true, but I've grown up around it my whole life nearly.

"I'm really sor-" The Marine can't finish his apology as he's shot from behind in the chest by the so-called underling of Don Krieg. The customers shriek and run in fear at the sight as the man falls to the floor of the restaurant entrance, the shooter walks past the body and sits down at the nearest empty table. He's scrawny for a pirate but he's not been fed for who knows how long and he's bleeding too. He sits down on the chair and puts his foot on the table trying to be intimidating.

"I don't care what it is. Bring me some food. This _is_ a restaurant, isn't it?" The Shooter questions leaning his blood-soaked face to Patty who doesn't seem scared whatsoever at the pirate.

"Welcome, mere bastard." Patty greets him with his hands clenched in front of him and a broad grin almost comical.

"I'll only say this once more, so listen up. Bring me some food." The Shooter demands and Patty doesn't seem fazed.

"I'm sorry Sir, but we'll be expecting you to pay for a meal here. Do you have enough money?" Patty asks him seeming almost shy but the Shooter doesn't seem impressed by that question and points the barrel of his gun in Patty's face.

"Is a bullet, okay?" The Shooter asks rhetorically, and Patty doesn't like that one bit.

"So I take it that you don't have any money." Patty clarifies then intertwines his fingers and brings his hands down onto the Shooter's head shocking the customers. Seems both brave and stupid to me.

"Why that Patty bastard broke one of my chairs!" The Owner complains not seems anything but annoyed while the two weakest crew members seem surprised.

"If you can't pay up, you can't eat," Patty tells him his arms crossed in front of him.

"Way to go, Mr Cook!" A customer cheers from the sideline.

"That pirate's nothing." Another customer cheers.

"Take him out. Patty!" A cook joins in the cheering, and the Shooter's stomach growls with immense hunger, and he holds it trying to silence the rumble and seems to be struggling to stay upright.

"Oh, your stomach's growling there, you filthy pirate." Patty taunts him looking down at the pirate.

"That was a fart. You jerk, hurry and get me something to eat." The Pirate demands weakly.

"You're no customer, so get the hell outta here!" Patty shouts at him and starts kicking the weak pirate on the floor with no mercy as the customers and cooks cheer him on. "Alright, everybody! Please, continue with your meal." He curtsies as the customers all applaud him soon he takes the Pirate and removes him from the room.

"Let's find somewhere to sit," I tell the others and walk over to an empty table with the others following behind. We sit down and look at the menu, it all sounds amazing!

"I can't decide!" Nami complains as she looks at the menu and pouts.

"Well, get whatever I've got the money from my last job," I tell her looking over at her from behind my menu.

"So, how does one get into the business of killing people for a living?" Zoro asks me, it was the most he's said to me since we left the ship.

"I plan to kill the person who murdered my mother. Seems reasonable enough to get some practice in the meantime while I'm looking." I shrug shocking Nami and Usopp.

"Killer!" "Demon!" Usopp and Nami cry out pointing at me with wide eyes.

"Calm down, people are looking," I tell them and soon someone comes over to take our order.

Our food soon arrives looking so good! We dig in sharing some but Usopp is acting stingy, and I caught sight of the strawhat wearing rubber boy walking down the stairs leading to the kitchen wearing an apron around his waist. "Hey, there waiter!" Nami calls out to Luffy after I point him out to her and gain his attention and he doesn't look happy.

"Hey! It's you guys!" He looks at us in disbelief as we sit enjoying our food.

"Hey, I heard that you've got to work here for a year!" Usopp questions, we'd heard one of the cooks complaining about a strawhat chore boy causing more trouble than help and that he'd be there for a year. Wasn't that hard to tell they were talking about our Captain.

"Can I redraw the pirate flag?" Zoro jokingly asks but Luffy doesn't seem to care as he drools at the food on our table.

"What's all this?" He asks us still drooling over the food. "You all stuffing yourselves with such great food while I'm not around?! That hurts!" He cries getting upset because he couldn't eat all this good food.

"Not really, it's our free will," Zoro comments seeming smug.

"And my money." I chime in and smirk at my Baby Brother as he looks more upset and does something gross. He picks his nose and drops it into Zoro's water glass as the swordsman laughs. The rest of us join in the laughter but for a different reason.

"But I've gotta admit, the food here's good." Zoro compliments and grabs his glass and brings it to his mouth. "I feel kinda sorry for you." He looks like he's about to drink it but shoves it into Luffy's mouth as he tries to fight to the swordsman away. "You drink it!" I can't fight the laughter as we all break into uncontrollable laughter at our Captain and First Mate's antics, Zoro lets Luffy go and he falls to the floor struggling as he tries not to choke.

"Why'd you do that!" Luffy cries out as he flips around on the floor holding his throat.

"You too! What were you trying to pull?" Zoro demands as he looks down at our struggling Captain.

"My stomach's aching!" Nami laughs uncontrollably banging her hand down on the table with Usopp and I laugh along with her.

"O' Mother Ocean! Thank you for arranging this encounter today!" A recited flirt line breaks Nami from her laughter as I look to see Sanji between us with two roses in his hands in both mine and Nami's direction. "Oh, my loves! Go on, laugh at me. I, who can't bare torture. As long as I'm with you, it matters not if I'm a pirate or a devil… my heart's ready as can be!" He proclaims with hearts in his eyes as he swings his head back and forth looking at Nami and I. "But this is horrible! There's such a great obstacle between us!"

"The obstacle is me, right?" The Owner asks as he makes his presence known and saving Sanji from more cringy lines. "Sanji." He snaps the young cook out of his daydream.

"The old fart," Sanji mutters to himself in annoyance.

"This is just great. Why don't you just run off and be a pirate just like them? We don't need you here anymore!" He tells the young Cook who seems more betrayed than anything. Well, this just got awkward. First confessions from a complete player now a family argument. Why us!

"Hey, old fart. Ain't I the Assistant Head Chef here? What's your crap of not needing me no more?" Sanji demands, looking at the old man.

"You always fight with our customers. You flirt with any beautiful woman in sight. And you make lousy food. You're nothing more than a burden to this restaurant! That's what I mean." The Owner explains which I hate to say was really heartless.

"What the…?!" Sanji begins to say but the sound of snickering coming from upstairs cuts him off for a second.

"The other cooks don't like you anyway. Why don't you just become a pirate or whatever you please? Why don't you just get the hell outta here?!" He urges him but it seems so harsh and almost unbelievable.

"What's this crap? I didn't do shit and now you're blowing your head off, old fart? I don't care about the rest of your excuses…" Sanji tells him and walks over to him. "But I'll never allow my cooking to be insulted! I don't care what the hell you're gonna say… I'm gonna stay right here as a chef!" He grabs the Owner by his chef's jacket aggressively. "If you don't like it, it's your problem!"

"How dare you hit your own boss!" He says and grabs Sanji by his blazer and throws him. "You stupid eggplant!" He shouts as he throws the young cook and the blond man lands on our table almost ruining our foodwith forcebut we quickly grab it keeping it all safe.

"Dammit." He mutters as he slides to the floor and gets back up. "Are you kiddin'? No matter how hard you may try… I'm gonna stay right here as a chef! Till the day you go to hell!" The Owner seems to have enough and walks away.

"I won't die! I'll live another 100 years!" The old man retorts as he walks away.

"What a stubborn old man…" Sanji mutters and Luffy crouches down next to him.

"Isn't that great that he gave you his blessing! Now you can come with us!" Luffy beams looking at the fallen cook.

"Hell no!" Sanji snaps at the rubber idiot and puts our table back upright. "Alright then. Please pardon me for what has happened. As an apology, I've ordered you a Fruit Macedonia, my princesses." He smoothes over as he puts down the desert and fills our glasses.

"Why, thank you. You're so kind." Nami plays along getting ready to sink her claws in.

"It's nothing." Sanji falls into her trap and Usopp jumps over to them annoyed.

"What's this? You're not apologising to us? I'll sue you, you love cook!" Usopp rants at him but Sanji doesn't seem fazed at all.

"I've brought you some tea, isn't that enough? You should thank me, long nose." Sanji remarks as he looks Usopp dead in the eye.

"Huh? Picking a fight? I won't go easy on you! Get him, Killer!" Usopp demands, turning around to me pointing at Sanji.

"Do it yourself." I snap and continue eating my delicious food.

"Please, don't fight over me." Nami gushes pulls the attention back to her.

"Very well, Ma'am. I'll stop." Sanji complies with devotion to the strange woman.

"Who's fighting over you?!" Usopp snaps looking down at her.

"By the way... " Nami purrs gaining Sanji's attention. "The food here's great, but… it's a bit expensive for Dakota and me." She plays around with Sanji making him fall into her trap.

"Of course. I won't make _you or Dakota_ pay." Sanji coos under Nami's spell, she attacks him in a hug.

"Thank you!" She squeals but Sanji looks at the boys.

"You guys have to," Sanji tells them but they still seem shocked.

"I already saw that coming," Zoro mutters annoyed and Luffy starts laughing but stops when Sanji kicks him around the head making his neck stretch with the hit and it wobbles around disoriented.

"Hey, why are you slacking off here for?" Sanji demands and picks our Captain up and positions him under his arm before dragging him away. "Go give the guests towels when they come in!"

"Yes, sir." Luffy agrees still seeming disorientated from the previous hit as we all watch after them.

"What are we going to do now, I don't have any money?" Usopp asks seeming to have forgotten I was paying just for the boys now which was fine with me.

"Usopp, don't be stupid," Zoro tells him as he drinks from a new glass, Usopp looks at him annoyed and is about to say something. "Dakota already said she would pay, remember?" That seems to stop the long nose sniper and he stops and enjoys his meal.

"How long do you think before they've had enough of Luffy?" I question looking at the others.

"Not long maybe less than a week," Nami answers as she picks a piece of fruit and pops it into her mouth.

"He's more trouble than anything." Zoro comments, I couldn't disagree with that, he was.

"He's always been like that." I agree and think back to when I first met the black-haired boy in his village bar with Makino, he seemed so excited to meet real pirates and asked lots of questions. He got into trouble as we grew up but that was just him. That 's who my Baby Brother is.

 **TROUBLE IN THE BARATIE**

It's the fourth days since we arrived at The Baratie and Luffy has to help the Owner as he doesn't have any money to repair the damage done by the Marine's cannonball. We're lounging around apart from Luffy on the Going Merry as there isn't much to do around here and it's fogging which I hate. "Man, it's already been four days. I'm getting fed up with this place. How soon can we leave, ya think?" Usopp complains for the rest of us to hear.

"Beats me." Zoro answers, it's not like we knew anything, Luffy was rubbish at negotiations, and that was already proven when the Owner and Luffy went through the ceiling of the restaurant.

"You don't think he'll really be stuck here for a year, do you?" Usopp asks, it wasn't a dumb question but still have a little faith.

"Why not? We've got free food, a cosy atmosphere…" Nami replies as she leans over the edge.

"You and Dakota are the only ones!" Zoro snaps and looks over at me, and I just shrug as it wasn't my fault or idea. It was all Nami's. Usopp points out Luffy as he carries a large trash bag in hand.

"Hey, Luffy!" I call out to him, gaining his attention as he peers out from behind the bag.

"What's up with you? Hurry up and get out of this mess!" Usopp starts complaining again.

"Ah, can't you guys wait just a bit longer? I'll try talking to the boss again." Luffy replies, it wasn't going to work.

"Please do!" Usopp cries out, and something feels off, and I look over into the thick fog to see in the distance a shadow of a pirate ship approaching us.

As it gets closer more markings, come into focus, the Pirate Flag was of the usual skull with two hourglasses in between the bones on either side. Something was off with the ship as I look closer it was tattered and creaking almost like the stories Dad would tell me of ghost ships, but it was definitely Don Krieg's ship. It stops right by The Baratie casting a shadow over the smaller ship and us, Luffy moves towards the ship seeming curious while Usopp is freaking out next to me as we hear the commotion inside the restaurant. "Hey, we oughta get outta here ourselves!" Usopp cries out in fear.

"That ship's huge!" Nami panics behind us as we all look at the large ship when a gale wind flows in dissipating the thick fog and revealing the damage of the larger ship, they're chunks taken out of the ship. The ship was terrible to look at but something catches my eye, it's a shadow of a large man walking along the ship and gets off, he comes into focus, it's Don Krieg weak and seeming injured being carried by his little helper from four days ago. They make their way to the doors of the restaurant and open the doors, it's quiet inside as they must be terrified of one of the most powerful pirates in the East Blue.

There seems to be some more commotion inside as Don Krieg, and his minion come inside, and it gets louder as time goes on. After a few minutes, I hear a crash and more crashing then a woman screaming along with customers fleeing the restaurant onto their ship. "What's going on in the restaurant?" Usopp wonders as we watch the fleeing crowd.

"Trouble. Lots of it." I reply with a smile and share a look with Zoro.

"Let's go check it out," Zoro suggests looking into my eyes.

"What?! You serious?!" Usopp yelps, looking over at us in shock and fear.

"What's wrong? You scared?" I provoke him with a Cheshire grin plastered on my lips.

"Huh? Don't be silly!" He denies, but you can hear the fear in his shrill cries. Zoro smiles then looks over at the damaged ship with a serious look, I feel as if I know the marks, but I can't seem to place them. I hear more shouting from inside the restaurant seems they're having more trouble inside then a bright light seeping through the windows and a bang from inside almost like a cannon followed by an explosion of the restaurant doorway. Smoke flows through the restaurant entrance to outside; it seems like it was a large explosion. The sound of gunshots ring out from inside then the words "Do as I say! I'm the strongest man there is!" It was Don Krieg's voice as he shouts, he was so wrong. I've met Whitebeard once as a kid I know the strongest man alive. Beat that!

I've had enough waiting around and get into a pair of black jeans with a black shirt and a jacket and high heeled boots. I was ready to fight and in style. I walk out of mine and Nami's room to see Usopp and Zoro telling Johnny and Yosaku to look after the ship with Nami. "Let's go then boys," I order them as I jump on the side of the ship and jump down onto the deck of The Baratie. Zoro throws Usopp who is shaking over onto the deck next to me; he falls onto his face then Zoro jumps down onto the other side of me. I walk over a set of stairs that lead up to the second floor of the restaurant, and the boys follow me as we go up the steps.

 **TROUBLE IN THE BARATIE**

I open the door to see we're in the back entrance of the kitchen and walk through seeing all the food still around the messy kitchen, Usopp tries running away, but Zoro keeps a firm grip on the back of his shirt.

 **TROUBLE IN THE BARATIE**

I finally find the stairs leading down onto the restaurant floor and stand watching the scene in front of me of the supposed King of the East Blue with his henchmen cowering beside him and the cooks along with Luffy in front of us facing him. "-shall I kill you off right now?" Krieg threatens my Baby Brother with narrow eyes, but Luffy just shrugs it off with his own.

"If you think you're up to it." Luffy swings his arm back as if readying himself for a fight.

"What? Very well then. You want to be sent to the next world?" He growls then his shoulder plates on his tacky golden army release air before popping up showing two barrels. The cooks take a step back in fright of the empty threat; we make ourselves known as Zoro begins to unleash his swords and I tap my demon claws against the railing of the stairs.

"Starting a brawl, Luffy?" Zoro questions next to me, and Usopp shaking still on the other side of me as I lean against the railing looking down. "Need a hand?"

"W-we don't have to, y-you know." Usopp stutters terribly.

"But we don't mind joining in," I smirk looking Krieg dead in the eye and make m eyes glow a bright red, he seems startled and takes a step back for a second and everyone looks at us.

"Zoro! Dakota! Usopp! You dropped by! It's okay. Just sit and watch." Luffy tells us, and Usopp seems relieved, I sigh in annoyance and slump over the railing, Zoro puts his sword back.

"Oh, okay… that's too bad then… if you don't need us, there's nothing we can do about that. I-I'll help ya if you still need it! G-good luck!" Usopp keeps stuttering and both Zoro, and I hit him sending him back into the wall behind us. "What the hell was that for, Zoro! Dakota!" He complains looking up at us.

"Shut up," Zoro warns him.

"And stay still," I add then Krieg starts laughing at something, I turn back to the sizeable pathetic man as he chuckles.

"Are those your men? Are they all you've got with you?" Krieg asks still smiling as if it was funny.

"What're you talking about? There are two more!" Luffy answers and shows him two more fingers.

"Hey, why do you keep counting me in!" Sanji demands, and I see Krieg looking at the Owner with narrow eyes as if sizing him up then pops the shoulder patches down covering the guns again.

"I'll take care of you guys later. Right now, I need to feed my men." He comments and takes a large sack full of food and tosses it over his shoulder and looks at the room full of people with a grim look. "For those who don't wish to die, you'd better not be here when I return. The only things I want are the journal and this ship." And with that, he walks off back to his damaged ship but stops in the doorway. "However, if you really want to throw your lives away, i'll have to go out of my way, but I'll be happy to send you to the bottom of the ocean! Keep that in mind." And finally, he leaves to his ship leaving an eerie silence over the restaurant for a second.

"I'm sorry, Sanji." The henchmen apologies for his Captain seeming in pain. "I never would've imagined things to turn out this way…"

"I don't need an apology from the likes of you, fool!" The Owner tells him, and they look at him in shock. "We are but cooks in this establishment. We'll feed anybody who comes along."

"Owner!" Patty yells out clutching a large utensil like the rest of the cooks. "Why are you siding with Sanji? What's going on here?" He demands, and the other cooks agree with him.

"Yeah! This is his fault!"

"He's going to destroy your precious restaurant!"

"Shut the hell up, you stupid eggplants!" The old man shouts silencing the angry cooks. "Have you ever had the experience of starving to death? Can you imagine how horrible it is? Having no food and water in this vast ocean?"

"W-what do you mean, Owner?" Patty asks c of the speech.

"The difference between all of you and Sanji is that he knows that feeling." He tells them, the cooks seem shocked by this revelation.

"What does he mean? What does Sanji know about?" A cook asks seeming to have missed the point of the speech.

"Rather than just standing idle with petty talk, you'd all better leave this place now!" The old man warns them not looking at any of them.

"I'm staying right here to fight! I can't simply let them trample over me!" Patty declares with fire, and all the cooks seem to agree with him.

"Me too!"

"This is where I work!"

"I have no place to go to anyway." With that said the cooks all share looks before clutching their so-called weapons in hand. The pirate minion looks around him frantically at the courageous cooks and slams his hands down on the floor gaining their attention.

"What are you doing?! Didn't you see how strong our Captain is?" He urges trying to stop the suicidal cooks, but it isn't going to work.

"Hey, Gin." Sanji addresses the enemy casually. "Feeding the hungry is what being a cook is all about. However…" Sanji walks forward as he says this and plants his foot on the leg of a table and uses force to push the table into the air and uses the same food to stop the table and push it down onto the floor. "Now that your Captain's all filled up, he's nothing more than a plunderer. Whatever I do to your pals, don't come bitchin' at me. I'll kill anybody who tries to take this restaurant. Even you! Got that?" With that threat Gin, the pirate minion gives an audible gulp sweating a little.

"Heh! You saved his life just to kill him off? You're so thoughtful, Sanji." Patty backhands, looking at the younger cook.

"Shut up, you fat-ass cook!" He insults the cook not even looking at him.

"Didn't I tell you he was something?" Luffy asks looking up at us.

"Sure his Brother." I giggle, but Usopp is still panicking.

"Who cares about him now? Let's just get the hell out of here!" Usopp cries out in distress though it was most likely that he wasn't going to fight.

"Calm down," Zoro warns him as we look over at the terrified long nose boy. "Even if he's Krieg, he's all battered up."

"Hm, Gin! You said once before that you know nothing about the Grand Line, right? But you _have_ been there, haven't you?" Luffy asks him turning to face him; this seems to peak some interest in the room.

"The truth is I don't know nothing. What happened at the Grand Line on the seventh day… was it a dream? Or reality? It's still fresh in my mind… it was unbelievable. Just one man… destroying a whole fleet of 50 ships!" Gin recalls, the news shocks the cooks as they all gap dramatically even Usopp starts screaming and Luffy seem surprised even with the stories I use to tell him of the adventures I've had with my Dad.

"WHAT?!" Everyone shouts out in shock.

"It all happened so suddenly. He showed up out of nowhere and… started sinking our ships one after the other. If a storm hadn't come along, our maiden ship would've been destroyed too. I have no idea how many of my mate's ships survived. But it was too scary for me to accept it all. I don't want to even think about what had happened! That man… it's stare pierces through you, like the eyes of a hawk!" Gin continues his experience but with the last bit seems to catch Zoro's attention. He jolts forward clenching his hand around the railing leaning his upper body over in anticipation and excitement.

"What? What did you say?" Zoro mutters as Usopp, and I look at him in worry at his actions.

"That guy… he must be the man known as Hawk-Eyes. The fact that you noticed his eyes leads me to believe that it _was_ him. It all sounds like something he would do." The old man says, it definitely did sound like Uncle, but I wonder if he was just bored that was always his problem, he gets bored too quickly sometimes. He needs a woman. I look over to see Zoro with a crazed look in his eyes still gripping onto the railing almost denting the metal with force.

"The Hawk-Eyed Man!" Zoro drools out as he shakes in excitement.

"Eh, you know that guy, Zoro?" Luf asks him looking up at us, which seems to snap the swordsman out of his daze.

"That's the man I've been looking for. I sailed across the oceans in search of him." Zoro replies seeming to have calmed down some.

"Maybe he had some kind of grudge to settle with you guys," Sanji suggests taking a drag from his cigarette.

"Not that I know of." Gin snaps, looking at Sanji.

"Perhaps you disturbed his nap." The old man adds in his suggestion which wouldn't be too far off.

"Or he just got bored." I chime in and smirk looking at Gin who seems angry.

"Stop the bullshit! Why in the world would he destroy our fleet just for that?" He shouts at us, but the old man finds it funny as he lets out a low laugh.

"Don't get so worked up." He tells him.

"I'm just making a guess, silly," I add smirking knowing I was right really. "Stuff like that happens in the Grand Line all the time." Everyone looks at me in shock but Luffy as I said I've told him stories of my time and he knows I grew up on those seas.

"Just what kind of place is that?" Usopp asks looking up at me as I smile down at him looking at his wide eyes showing fear.

"A place where anything can happen," Zoro answers sending Usopp over the edge as tears flow down his cheeks in immense fear.

"Hey, Luffy!" He calls down to our Captain, gaining his attention. "Stop this right now! We can't go there! Luffy?" Luffy seems to be shaking slightly. "Hey, Luffy?" He soon burst out in laughter and excitement.

"Gah! I'm so pumped up! I was hoping the Grand Line would have all this!" Luffy cheers, I laugh as this was the same thing he'd said when I told him my stories. "Dakota you were right!"

"Can't you be more concerned about your safety?" Usopp snaps at him as he looks down, but we all knew he was thinking about himself more as he was a little coward.

"But with all this talk, now my destination will really be the Grand Line." Zoro leans back against the wall behind us. "That man… I can definitely meet him there!"

"Are you morons? You must be those who are eager to die." Sanji says looking up at us.

"That's right. But it's none of your business. When I decided to become the greatest swordsman in the world, I threw away the rest of my life. I'm the only one who can say I'm an idiot." Zoro retorts looking down at the blond cook. Well, that's something.

"Me too! Me too!" Luffy chimes in.

"As a man of the sea, same here!" Usopp adds in but you can hear the lie, and I knock him on the head a couple of times.

"Cut the lying. Idiot." I tell him and look back at Zoro, such a waste of a life but I know his ambition, and I know the things I too have given up to achieve mine. "I see no reason not to agree."

"Fools," Sanji mutters to himself, but I could still hear him nonetheless.

"Hey! Hey! Do you bastards realise what's going on here? Don Krieg's ship is right in front of this restaurant! Do all the talking only after we get out of this mess!" Patty warns us.

"It doesn't matter to me, I've killed more than enough people before," I mumble and jump over the railings onto the floor below as I hear the war cries from the damaged ship.

"Here they come!" A cook shouts out as they all ready their makeshift weapons, I get out my custom knuckle duster with blades on either side from my jacket inside pocket. "I can hear them!" He states the obvious again. "We won't let them through! Coz this ship is _our_ restaurant!" I hear the sound of their heavy footsteps as they run towards us from their ship.

"Run in fear you cooks!" A random pirate screams but it goes silent as a slicing sound comes from outside, then a rumble before waves crash around outside from their ship being hit by something. I narrow my eyes knowing who it was as everyone else seems in shock.

"What?!" Luffy gapes as the rest of them do the same.

"What the hell was that?!" I hear Krieg cry out in bedwetting terror. Most likely a flashback from the Grand Line. The cries of the pirates from outside too is audible as they struggle with their sinking ship, the waves coming from the ship rock the restaurant along with us inside.

"Go hoist the anchor! Or our ship'll get pulled under with them!" The old man orders one of his cooks who races out in compliance.

"This is bad. Nami, Yosaku and Johnny are still on our ship!" Zoro mentions and jumps down next to me, and we race outside the restaurant.

 **TROUBLE IN THE BARATIE**

Outside the restaurant, Don Krieg's large ship is almost entirely submerged. "Big Bro! Big Bro!" I hear Johnny and Yosaku cry out for Zoro as they swim towards us, I walk over with the other to the side by a railing to see them.

"Yosaku! Johnny! Are you guys okay!" Luffy asks them frantically.

"Where's the ship? What happened to Nami?" Zoro quickly asks them; I almost feel a slight bit of jealousy seep through my being at the thought of Zoro liking the ginger treasure lover.

"She's… I'm sorry, Big Bro! She's left!" Yosaku tries telling us.  
"Big Sis Nami, she…" Johnny cries out not actually telling us.

"She took off with all the treasure!" Yosaku finally tells us, but then again I didn't get most of it as they kept on crying.

"W-what did you just say?!" We shout down at them in shock at the actions of our navigator.

"It's him." The old man states, I look over at him to see a look of shock on his face, I turn my head to the waters to see a small wooden raft with a sail and a candle emitting a green flame. It was him.

"It can't be… he is… the man with the Hawk Eyes?!" I hear Zoro say and look over to him to see him sweating and a frantic look in his eyes. Well, this should be fun.

 **Hey, you amazing readers thank you for all the support you've given me and here's another chapter to say thank you by the way if you haven't noticed it's super long and please let me know what you think. DEADGIRLETERNAL OUT!**


	6. Fought With Style

**FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

 **DAKOTA'S POV:**

" _It's him." The old man states, I look over at him to see a look of shock on his face, I turn my head to the waters to see a small wooden raft with a sail and a candle emitting a green flame. It was him._

" _It can't be… he is… the man with the Hawk Eyes?!" I hear Zoro say and look over to him to see him sweating and a frantic look in his eyes. Well, this should be fun._

I pick the two morons out of the water below and drop them to the floor on their backs; they seem tired as they pant for lost oxygen. I look down at them in disappointment at the fact they lost our ship to Nami of all people and why she's gone. The boys and I don't give them much time to rest as we bombard them with questions. "What did you say?!" Usopp demands, stepping towards them.

"Nami ran off with the Going Merry?!" Luffy asks frantically.

"What exactly happened?!" Zoro questions them moving towards them.

"Where's all my money and weapons?!" I demand moving over Luffy getting a better look at the lousy Pirate Hunters.

"Everything happened so suddenly." Yosaku begins saying them tells us how Nami was acting strange then tricked them into turning around as she was pretending to change her shirt then pushed them over the side of the ship and sailed off leaving them just before Don Krieg's ship was sliced in half. Damn idiots!

"And that's how we lost the ship!" Johnny finishes, and the duo kneel down in front of us bowing in forgiveness.

"Forgive us!" Yosaku cries as they bow their heads at us, Zoro punches the side of the restaurant in anger, but something from the story doesn't sit well with me. Arlong was dangerous so why was Nami interested in him there has to be something there.

"Damn! She took advantage of us!" Zoro growls out his fist clenched in anger.

"That ship was given to us by Kaya!" Usopp hisses as he clenches his fists in intense anger.

"Hold up! I can see it! Dakota have a look!" Luffy points out as he stands on the railing of the restaurant looking out with his hands covering the sun's glare. I jump up beside him and see in the distance a small figure like a ship.

"I've got this. **Akuma-Akuma Demon Mode: Eyes From Hell!** " I reply, and my eyes glow a bright gold turning into cat-like eyes completely gold and look to the figure as it becomes larger and clear. "It's definitely the Going Merry," I tell the boys and look further to see an island in the distance some time away. "She looks like she's heading to an island." I close my eyes letting them turn back to their normal state.

"Where's your ship?" Luffy demands, looking back at the Pirate Hunter duo.

"We still have it, but…" Yosaku answers as they look up at him.

"Zoro, Usopp, Dakota, leave right away! Fetch Nami using their ship." Luffy orders us.

"Never mind. Let it go." Zoro retorts dismissing the request of our Captain. "There's no need to chase _that_ woman."

"I can't be without _her_ as my navigator!" Luffy announces and our First Mate and Captain do a little staring contest before Zoro gives into our Captain's demands.

"Fine! What a pain-in-the-ass Captain… hey, Usopp, Dakota, let's go!" He tells us, and Usopp gives his agreement, and the duo go to get their little boat.

"Luffy, I can't just leave you by yourself. You always cause trouble everywhere you go,"I argue looking at my Baby Brother.

"I'll be okay Sis, don't worry." He tells me, but I glare at him, I won't leave him here just to fight those loser pirates by himself.

"I'm not leaving, and that's final." I snap and cross my eyes as the duo come back with their boat and reverse it towards us.

"Big Bro Zoro, the ship's ready!" The duo announces as Yosaku weighs anchor, Zoro turns towards our Captain.

"Luffy, what about you?" He asks him, even though it was perfectly obvious what he was going to do.

"I haven't fully repaid this restaurant yet, so I can't go." Luffy answers and I stand next to the moron.

"Do be careful. Dakota look after our Captain. Things here are abnormal." He tells us.

"Yeah, I know." Luffy agrees and seems almost serious.

"Don Krieg! It's that man!" A pirate yells out cutting the moment. I walk towards the railing to get a better look, it was him. Dracule Mihawk. My Uncle. I watch him sail through the ship's caucus with pirates littering the ship and waters surrounding it. "The man, who destroyed our fleet!" This must have gained the others attention as I hear Zoro mutter to himself.

"That man is…" He seems nervous almost as he gulps but maybe it was delight. "That man is…" He goes quiet again and the pirates all scream out things in fear of the Warlord.

"Zoro, who the heck is he?" Luffy asks him from behind me.  
"The man I've been searching for, Hawk-Eyes Mihawk." He answers seeming almost dark as he says it. Sexy, it sends a shiver down my spine.

"Hawk-Eyes Mihawk? I know that name." Luffy thinks, he does know that name I had told him that name many times in some of my stories of my large family.

"The strongest Swordsman in the world!" He clarifies as he looks thrilled as he stares at the small raft carrying the swordsman. I walk away to the front with the rest of the cooks seeming terrified at the sight of the raven-haired man with the compensating sword on his back as he drifts forward.

"That's the guy who instantly sank Don Krieg's fleet of 50 ships, which should've withstood the Grand Line?" Patty replies seeming almost in terror and awe at the swordsman.

"And he just destroyed another one of Don Krieg's ship!" A cook adds on seeming to share the same terror and awe for My _Dear_ Uncle.

"But, he looks no different from any other ordinary person." Another cook adds in which he was so wrong about. "And he doesn't seem to be armed with anything special." His untrained eyes deceive him, if you look closer, you can see his beautiful sword strapped to his back.

"His weapons on his back," I state, seeming to startle the cooks as they all turn to look at me in surprise.

"No, way you can't mean?!" The cook in front of me stutters out in shock.

"He destroyed that huge ship with _that_ sword?!" A cook to my left exclaims.

"He's the Greatest Swordsman, Hawk Eyes. A swordsman, above all of the world's swordsmen." Zeff clarifies as he looks out at the swordsman.

"That sword is a black blade called Yoru," I inform them when a cuss comes from a pirate towards my Uncle who seems to pay him some attention. Sorry, you're dead now mate.

"Why did you attack us?" The pirate demands as he looks up from the wreckage with some fellow pirates.

"To kill time." He replies only glancing quickly over his shoulder at the pirate.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

"Told you Gin." I grin looking at the pirate.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

"Bullshit!" The pirate on the wreckage cries out with two pistols drawn, and Uncle Mihawk clutches his sword and swings it down and to the side towards the pirate. The pirate pulls the trigger, and two bullets shoot towards the sword, Uncle Mihawk slightly tilts the blade at an angle making the bullets ricochet off the smooth metal and flies past my Uncle. "W-What!" The pirates all exclaim after what they saw. "I'm sure I was right on target!" He grits his teeth, and I saw the one person I was hoping would have left already. Roronoa Zoro. He stands behind them seeming thrilled as he looks ahead at my Uncle, his execution.

"He deviated. He redirected it with the tip of his sword." He explains but they don't buy it.

"That's ridiculous!" He denies, and Zoro moves him to the side as he walks to the edge of the wreckage. "Hey! Who the hell are you?"

"Swords, three of 'em. Could it be..?" A pirate questions and looks up at Zoro.

"I've never seen such graceful skill." Zoro compliments Uncle Mihawk gaining his attention as he glances over his shoulder at him.

"A sword with power alone is not powerful." He recites the same line he once told me years ago.

"So this ship was cut apart with that sword, too?" Zoro inquires.

"Of course." Uncle Mihawk answers shortly as always.

"It's clear now. You're the strongest! I've been sailing the seas to face you." Zoro declares and grabs his dark green bandana he has wrapped around his forearm.

"What's your mission?" Uncle Mihawk asks him not even looking at him as he sits in the seat looking at his hands that is clasped on his knee.

"To be the best!" This gets My Uncle's attention as he seems to smile at the ambitious swordsman.

"Fool." He taunts him as he looks at the greenette, but he just readies his treasured sword and points it towards my Uncle Mihawk.

"You've got time to spare, don't you? Let's duel, shall we?" Zoro requests looking too smug for his execution.

"This guy is… Zoro! The 'Three Swords' Roronoa Zoro!" A pirate announces, and the others all seem in shock at this revelation.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

"That guy?" I hear Sanji question seeming stunned by this news as he says this from behind me as we watch the exchange.

"Hey! Things are getting worse, Luffy! Dakota! Going Merry is about to be gone from our sights! And we need Dakota to track it! Hey Luffy!" Usopp reasons from the side but I know Luffy, and I are watching the fight about to commence.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

"Duel? Such a pitiful weakling." Uncle Mihawk insults as he looks over at Zoro who seems unaffected by his words. Uncle Mihawk jumps up quick from his seat and lands on the wreckage to the side of our Swordsman, who seems startled by the quickness of Uncle Mihawk's movements. "If you were really a fine swordsman, you should've been able to judge the difference in strengths without drawing your sword. Challenging me… are you that brave? Or simply reckless?" Uncle Mihawk warns him almost, but I know this won't stop Zoro.

"This is for my own ambition!" Zoro replies and puts his Wado Ichimonji into his mouth and unsheaths the other two dropping the scabbards on the ground haphazardly. "And for my promise to my fallen friend." I knew of the story he had told me about his promise but not in full detail just yet, and I want to know it so he has to live so I can watch him one day fulfil his dream like the rest of us.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

"The World's Greatest Swordsman Hawk-Eyes Mihawk vs Pirate Hunter Zoro. What kind of fight will it turn out to be?" Patty wonders aloud; it would be a test of pure talent, power and what is to come for us once we reach the Grand Line.

"No one can win against Big Bro!" Yosaku boasts seeming full of hope mostly.

"Big Bro's the best!" Johnny joins in.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

Uncle Mihawk grabs at his crucifix that hangs around his next by a piece of string; he pulls away the bottom to reveal a small dagger. "Hey now, what's the meaning of this?" Zoro demands as he glares at the small blade.

"I'm unlike those idiots who use their all to hunt rabbits. Though you're famous enough to be called a swordsman, this is the weakest of the four oceans, East Blue. unfortunately, I'm carrying nothing smaller than this." Uncle Mihawk mocks Zoro, and he knows it from the look on his face.

"Quit mocking me!" Zoro growls and sprints towards the worlds Greatest Swordsman. "Just don't regret it when you die!"

"You're but someone who's yet to experience the _real_ world." Uncle Mihawk remarks as he readies the small dagger for the incoming assault. Zoro continues to close the distance between them, and as he gets close enough, he swings his blade across from one another to his shoulders and slices down.

" **Oni Giri!** " Zoro calls out but the attack never hitting its mark as the three blades collide with Uncle Mihawk's small blade.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

"Zoro!" Luffy mutters stunned by what's in front of us.

"Big Bro's 'Oni Giri' was stopped!" Johnny panics shocked.

"But, that has always worked, 100% of the time! What in the world happened?!" Yosaku adds into the panic of Zoro's fan club. This was bad already Uncle Mihawk has shown him the extreme of the Grand Line's power with just one move.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

Zoro seems to struggle to move but moves back and runs towards Uncle Mihawk again looking more determined than before. "The world shouldn't be this far off!" Zoro bellows before giving out numerous swings, but Uncle Mihawk just deflects them effortlessly as they come.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

Watching it was almost sorrowful as Zoro tries with such effort and Uncle Mihawk just plays with him like a cat and a mouse, I look over to see Zoro's Fanclub quiet but seeming on the edge of a cliff as they watch their hero get humiliated in front of pathetic pirates who couldn't last a week in the Grand Line and cooks and his own friends.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

One move from Uncle Mihawk pushes Zoro back, and he lands on the broken deck of the wreckage and flips onto his front then he moves to the side, but his swords stay in his grip almost showing the snob his will to fight continues even if he's knocked down.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

"This can't be happening, Big Bro! Please fight seriously!" Yosaku shouts out to Zoro.

"Big Bro!" Johnny cries out for his fallen friend.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

Zoro gets up slightly looking up at Uncle Mihawk seeming to be glaring at him, "It can't possibly be this far away!" He grits his teeth and lunges up randomly strikes, and you can hear the strikes hitting the small dagger, but most of the time it's just the air. Zoro pushes Uncle Mihawk back to a railing, and he jumps back on top and jumps again as Zoro cuts the railing and jumps over. Zoro seeming in a frenzy almost continues to strike at my Uncle Mihawk, he strikes down, and Uncle Mihawk stops it with his blade and looks up at Zoro.

"Such unrestrained skill. My Niece can do better." He comments, he wasn't wrong I guess, but I'm not a swordswoman I'm an assassin. Zoro lunges forward at the comment and moves his head to the side his sword hitting the dagger's blade with force the air around them pushes out in a small vortex.

Zoro continues to strike at Uncle Mihawk, but still, he just deflects each attack with ease. "I… I didn't come all this way to lose against this toy like thing!" Zoro growls, and they continue to strike blows, and something seems to startle Zoro as he stops then snaps out of it lunging for Uncle Mihawk but he sidesteps out of the way. Zoro falls forward, and Uncle Mihawk swings his arm down knocking it to the back of Zoro's neck knocking him unconscious.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

" _The idiot! Why can't he just admit defeat and come back stronger than before."_ I think to myself and grit my teeth as I watch the fight and know this will end badly.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

Zoro soon comes back to consciousness and turns looking at My Uncle Mihawk as he stands a few feet away looking down at the panting greenette. Zoro stands and tries moving forward but staggers and gives a pitiful attempt to strike Uncle Mihawk and he sidesteps as Zoro falls onto his back still trying to catch his breath. Zoro struggles to get back to his feet, and Uncle Mihawk looks down at him with his emotionless stare. "What's your mission? Why do you seek the ultimate power, you weakling?" Uncle Mihawk demands, looking down as if he were something on his shoe.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

This gets a reaction from the Pirate Hunter duo as they try to leap to Zoro's defence. "Big Bro's a weakling, you say? You damn bastard!" Yosaku roars and they grip the hilts of their swords.

"I'll teach you a thing or two!" Johnny adds in, and they go to leap over, but Luffy and I stop them, I grab Yosaku by the back of his coat as Luffy does the same with Johnny.

"Stop! Yosaku! Johnny!" We snap as we bring them back. "Don't interfere! Just hang on!" Luffy orders and holds them down by their heads as they struggle for freedom.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

Zoro finally gets back up to his feet seeming more determined as he looks over at Uncle Mihawk. "I can't afford to lose!" Zoro scowls, and a long silence goes between them as if sizing up each other but it's cut short when Zoro slices his blades getting into a position to strike. He moves his arms to his left, and his blades are behind his third blade. " **Tora Gari!** " He never gets to strike as Uncle Mihawk steps forward with his blade and plunges it into his chest stopping the swordsman. I smell the unmistakable scent of blood fall and feel my demons awaken inside, I feel my heart begin to strike my ribcage trying to settle down, but it's no use. The scent is sweet and intoxicating almost hypnotic, I feel my kainines grow longer, and my eyes turn red, but I slow down the regression to full demon. I need to unleash my bloodlust before it happens and I lose all sense.

"Do you wish to have this go through your heart? Why don't you step back?" Uncle Mihawk asks the stubborn swordsman.

"I don't know. I'm not sure why myself. But if I were to take even one step back, I believe that all those important oaths, promises, and many other deals 'til now, will all go to waste and I'll never be able to return before you, ever again." Zoro explains as he talks I smell more blood flow come to the surface, and my bloodlust is almost at its limit.

"Yes, and that's called 'losing'." Uncle Mihawk replies seeming annoyed.

"That's why I can't step back." Zoro defends with an almost smirk in his voice.

"Even if it means death?" Uncle Mihawk questions him looking him dead in the eye.

"Death may be better!" Zoro replies and this shocks not only me but also Uncle Mihawk as he dislodges the dagger from his chest and takes a few steps backwards and places the cover over the little blade.

"Kid, announce your name!" Uncle Mihawk orders him, and he moves his swords and strikes a pose with his swords pointing in different directions in a circular type position.

"Roronoa Zoro!" He announces, and Uncle Mihawk moves to grab the hilt of Yoru.

"I'll remember that! It's been a while since I've seen such strong will. As a reward!" He remarks and unleashes Yoru from her sheath. "A gesture to a fellow swordsman, I will wield this 'Black Sword'. The most powerful sword in the world, to end your life."

"I appreciate your offer," Zoro replies this was overkill it is evident that Zoro was going to die and now it would pass his life would end today. Uncle Mihawk readies his blade; I grit my teeth as my anger surges adding to my bloodlust.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

The Pirate Hunter duo are panicking, and Luffy is being abnormally restrained at this point as I see him gripping the railing hard almost splitting the wood. "That's enough, Big Bro! Please stop!" Johnny cries out as he covers his head in anticipation for what is to happen next.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

Zoro moves his swords in a circular motion going in opposite directions making a whirring noise as he speeds up the movement. " **Three Sword Secret Technique!** " Uncle Mihawk lunges forward towards Zoro and slashes him. " **Three Thousand Worlds!** " The force of the hit from Yori shatters Zoro's two katana blades and more blood spurts out of the swordsman from new wounds and slumps his shoulders almost in defeat. He takes his precious sword from his mouth and slides her carefully back into her sheath and stands, turning around to face my Uncle with no fear. He spreads his arms to the side and Uncle Mihawk looks at him in shock.

"But why?" Uncle Mihawk questions and Zoro looks up with a look of almost happiness trying to hide the pain.

"A scar on the back is a swordsman's shame." Zoro grins, but it won't stop him from attacking.

"Well said." Uncle Mihawk agrees and slashes down his chest soon blood spurts out of the new open wound.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

I gape in shock hoping my eyes were deceiving me, but I try blinking but still I see Zoro standing with my Uncle with blood and a grin on his stupidly handsome face. "Zoro!" Luffy and Usopp scream out as the swordsman falls and I feel a pulsing sensation throughout my entire body.

"It's simple! To abandon your ambitions!" I hear Sanji shout out and then a splash as Zoro sinks into the water below.

"Damn! Damn! DAMN IT!" Luffy shouts, and I hear a swinging noise, but I can't seem to focus my eyes as my vision becomes red.  
"Big Bro!" The Pirate Duo shout and a splash from where they must have jumped into the water to get the corpse of Zoro. I hear Luffy scream move further away from me and must be in attack mode going for my Uncle. Good. Zoro's gone because of him.

"What the hell is that?" A cook questions most likely after seeing Luffy stretch some part of his body.

"Bastard!" Luffy snaps then crash into something wooden, and it's silent.

"You're the young swordsman's comrade? Thank you for watching over him. Rest assure, that man's still alive." Uncle Mihawk lies, and that seems to snap me in half as a red glow engulfs my hands.

" **Akuma Akuma Demon Arm: Rephaim!** " I shout and leap into the air and lunge for my Uncle.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

"Liar!" I reach him, but he's already raised Yoru to block my attack, dust flies into the air at the attack. "How dare you kill Zoro! Uncle!" I dash towards him my hand still a red glow as I give numerous punches, but still Yoru gets in my way.

"Did she just say, Uncle!" I hear a voice exclaim in shock, but I pay no mind as I continue to assault him.

"She did, just look at her no doubt their related!" Another exclaims in fear.

"Dakota, calm yourself. Do not let the demon awaken." Uncle Mihawk tries soothing me, but I feel I have fallen too far.

"Big Bro! Big Bro! Say something!" I hear Johnny exclaim then a cough; it was Zoro. I seem to snap out of my state, and my vision recedes to normal. I look to my left to see Luffy looking up with his bottom jaw on the floor and the pirates looking at me with looks of fear and shock. I look over to my right where Uncle looks to see Zoro in between Yosaku and Johnny as they swim towards their boat with Usopp aboard.

"Hey, quickly get him on the ship!" Usopp urges them and helps the injured swordsman aboard the boat. "Here's some medicine! Apply it quickly! Hah! I don't know what to do!" Usopp stresses making the duo do the same as they emphasize having no clue either.

"It's still too early for you to die. My name is Dracule Mihawk! Find your true self, true world, become stronger! No matter how long it will take, I will await you in my strongest form! Surpass this sword! Surpass me! Roronoa Zoro!" He proclaims.

"Always so dramatic, I see where I get it." I jest looking at him as he stares down at me.

"You care deeply for the swordsman; it seems even your strongest demons see it that way. Keep him close." He replies and I hear Johnny panicking aboard the boat. "Seems you are needed, Dear Niece." He then looks over his shoulder at Luffy as he crouches behind us looking ahead at our fallen friend. "Kid, what's your mission?" He asks him, but I know the answer.

"Pirate King!" He answers swiftly with no hesitation as he looks at my Uncle with no fear. As to be expected. Uncle looks down at him with a smirk on his lips which I have to say I haven't seen in years.

"That's a difficult path, harder than surpassing me." He remarks.

"Like I care, 'coz I'm gonna become one anyway!" Luffy snaps still upset at my Uncle for what he'd done and sticks his tongue out at him.

"He's alive!" Yosaku shouts the good news; I turn to look to see Usopp had given him a smelly to get him back to the land of consciousness which is just stupid now he would bleed more if he moves which knowing the stubborn swordsman he will.

"He just lost consciousness!" Usopp announces seeming relieved.

"Big Bro!" Yosaku cries with tears of joy running down his face.

"Big Bro, say something!" Johnny cries too; I take a step forward to the edge of the wreckage in anticipation of what he would say.

"Zoro!" I sigh in happiness and see him raise his last remaining sword into the air.

"Big Bro!" Johnny cries out again.

"Luffy, can you hear me?" Zoro asks weakly.

"Yeah!" Luffy replies getting to his feet beside my Uncle and me.

"Sorry for worrying you. If I don't become the Greatest Swordsman in the World, you'd be in a dilemma now, right?" He remarks but cuts short as he gives a harsh cough.

"Big Bro, don't say any more! Big Bro!" The duo panic some more over their hero.

"I will… I will never… LOSE AGAIN!" He declares for everyone to hear and I could tell he was crying in frustration. "Until I defeat him and become the Strongest Swordsman, I'll never be defeated anymore! Any problem with that, Pirate King?!" I share a grin with Luffy and Uncle Mihawk at his declaration, and I know he'll stick to it.

"None!" Luffy giggles with a big grin on his face.

"Good team." Uncle Mihawk compliments them, and I couldn't agree more. "I hope we meet again. Dakota, I wish to speak with you for one moment." He says and turns walking away with me in tow but before we even get a few steps in Don Krieg's fat ass gets involved.

"Hold on there, Hawk-Eyes! Didn't you come for my head? East Blue's greatest, Don Krieg's head?" He boasts seeming big headed more and more as he goes on.

"Just shut it, fat ass. Let my Uncle go back to sleep he's tired from all this _fun_ , and you're not that greatest of anything. I've met better and more powerful pirates since I could walk!" I snap looking at the fat ass lug. I turn around to look at Uncle, and he looks down at me. "I'm sorry for cussing Uncle; it won't happen again." I apologise again even now I should know not to cuss in front of him.

"I came here along with the intent to warn you of the Marine's in this area, it has come to their attention that you have returned. They will not go lightly on you Dear Niece. I wish to see your Father any words for me to relay?" He warns me, and I smile and hug him close to me, he hesitates at first like always and returns my hug probably shocking a lot of people.

"Tell Dad that I cut my precious hair and that I've finally gotten married then tell him it was a joke. Also, tell my Uncles I love them all even Dad and I hope to speak to him soon." I tell him, and I hear Krieg crack his bones as if getting ready for a fight.

"It may have been enough fun for you, but I haven't done my bit yet." He says and grins before whipping out two guns and then two sections on his sides of his armour open to reveal more weapons. He shoots towards us, and we all go our own way to escape the bullets, I jump into the air away.

" **Akuma Akuma Demon Arm: Amarok!** " I call and my arm grows dark brown thick fur, and my nails grow longer into claws.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

I fall near the boat and clutch onto the side. Johnny and Usopp jump up and pull me aboard out of the close encounter with the ocean. I look down to see Zoro bloody lying on the floor of this tiny boat and the first aid kit that Usopp had retrieved. I grab the box and take out rubbing alcohol along with bandages, but I need to see how bad the wound it first. "Usopp!" Luffy calls out to our Sniper who cowers behind the railing.

"Luffy!" He calls back and looks up; I look over as well to see Luffy handing on the railing of The Baratie with the cooks behind him.

"Get going! Take care of Nami!" He orders us, and Usopp seems thrilled about getting away from the danger.

"Gotcha! Me, Dakota and Zoro will definitely get Nami back! You just make that cook one of us! Then we'll make a party of six and head to the Grand Line!" Usopp exclaims seeming to throw his fears away for now and even throws Luffy's hat into the air for him to stretch out his arm to catch it.

"Yeah! Now go!" Luffy replies smiling at us; we set sail following Nami to the island she's heading for.

 **FOUGHT WITH STYLE**

"Take Zoro's shirt off and clean the wound," I order them as I grab the rubbing alcohol and bandages as Johnny and Yosaku fight over who was doing it. "Knock it off!" I shout, and they stop we begin to treat Zoro's wounds.

"So, when where you going to tell me he was your Uncle?" Zoro asks weakly as he looks at me.

"Like I've said before. I have no secrets ask me anything, and I will answer it." I retort as I bandage his chest.

"Well, are there any more relatives we should know about?" He jests but come to think of it; I had dozens of them.

"Well you know my Dad's crew are all my Uncles and Aunts then Mihawk is my Uncle but not by blood," I reply shocking them.

"Wait, not by blood so how then?" Yosaku asks me.

"He and my Dad use to fight all the time as I grew up and well we got along, he taught me how to sword fight though my Dad was super jealous of all the time I would spend with him." I laugh and think back to the times I spent with my big happy family. "I also have some in the Grand Line near the beginning on an island, but I never met them, they're from my Mother's side." I look down at Zoro seeing him closing his eyes and know he needs to rest. "Let's sleep now Zoro; you've had an important day. You just met your idol and got your ass handed to you." He smiles with his eyes closed. "You fought with style, Roronoa Zoro." I feel his heart slow down and his breathing becomes shallow meaning he was now sleeping, and I let the tears leak from my eyes in relief.

 **Amazing! Hope you love this chapter please let me know what you're thinking about this chapter, and I hope it hasn't disappointed. Also I'm in a bit of trouble as it may not be around the next chapter but this is a Zoro X OC X Robin now I know in my head when The duo becomes a trio but when should they become a duo I had thought around the end of the Alabasta Arc but what do you think and please explain why you pick that time if so. Thank you are all fantastic readers! DEADGIRLETERNAL OUT!**


	7. We're Coming For You Nami!

**WE'RE COMING FOR YOU NAMI!**

 **DAKOTA'S POV:**

We continue to sail on the trail of Nami with the duo fussing over the injured swordsman lying on the floor of the tiny boat and Usopp keeps imagining horrible things about Luffy dying looking back at the rear of the boat while I look out for the Going Merry. "Shut up!" I order them, and they all go dead quiet, they even stop moving. "We need to keep heading in the direction Nami is going, and I can't concentrate with all your yammering about things like Luffy dying or Zoro dying when none of that is true." I look at them as they stay silent and stand at the front of the boat. " **Akuma Akuma Demon Mode: Eyes From Hell**." I close my eyes and open them again to allow the golden feline eyes take over. I forward my sight around 20 times above natural human capacity to see the Going Merry with Nami aboard heading for an island about five or so miles in front.

"Where's she heading?" Usopp asks me looking up at me with both curiosity and fear mixed into his eyes.

"I'm not too sure, but I recognise the building on the far side of the island," I answer him and close my eyes deactivation my demon eyes and walk over the little cabin to find a map.

 **WE'RE COMING FOR YOU NAMI!**

I look around the tiny cabin to find it a complete mess with clothes over the floor, plates of food probably growing mould and some gross magazines too. I proceed in looking in a few of the draws and find the map of the east blue I'm looking for. A glint of metal catches my eye as I begin to leave the room, I stop in my step to move come pieces of clothing out of the way to see a pair of twin blades and take them putting them around my waist securely.

 **WE'RE COMING FOR YOU NAMI!**

I roll the map out on the floor in front of the boys and point in the general direction of where we are. "This is roughly where we are, and Nami is heading for this island," I tell them and point at the island ahead of us. "This is Conomi Island which from my sources Arlong is residing at the moment." I look up to see the Pirate Duo looking pale from shock at the mention of the Fishman in question and seem to be shaking terrible.

"Are you sure, Big Sis Dakota?" Johnny stutters and looks at me with sweat running down his brow.

"I'm sure, she's too close now to change direction, and you already said she was looking at Arlong's Wanted Poster which gives me some ideas as to why she would be heading here and none of them are good," I reply and look up to see that Zoro is now awake from his little coma.

"So, we know where she's going?" He asks looking over at us, the guys all rejoice and crowd him suffocating him as he struggles to get free of their grasp.

"Yosaku stop that," I warn him and pick him up by his coat letting him hang in the air, as I do this a black and grey striped shark suddenly jumps out of the water high and takes hold of Yosaku's bottom half and falls back into the water along with the screaming Pirate Hunter.

"YOSAKU!" Johnny shouts out at the shark and his partner swim away.

"I'm sure he'll be fine," I promise but pay no mind as he continues to shout after his long-lost partner and walk over to Zoro checking his wound. He seems fine, so I smack him in the forehead leaving a small red mark right in the centre.

"Ow! What was that for?!" He demands, looking at me as I stare him down.

"You could have done anything but fight Uncle Hawky, and you could have lived, you're now dead," I tell him, he looks at Johnny and Usopp then I smack him on the head again diverting his attention back to me.

"Ow! Stop doing that!" I ignore him and go to do it again, but he stops my hand from making contact with his forehead.

"Okay, you're not dead, but you could have been!" I warn him and look into his eyes seeing no regret, so I do what I do with my brothers and smack him with my other hand in the head.

"Ow! I'm fine, and I had to do it. If it were your Mother's killer wouldn't you wish to face them regardless if you knew they could kill you easily?" He asks, and I knew he was right and stand up.

"That'll scar, and we're almost at the island Nami was heading, and Yosaku's been eaten by a shark," I state, he looks up at me with wide eyes along with the other two then I close my eyes letting them turn a golden glow in the form of feline-like eyes again. " **Akuma Akuma Demon Mode: Eyes From Hell.** " I turn my head in opposite direction which I saw the shark take him and scan for the missing Pirate Hunter and see The Baratie still intact mostly and quiet till said shark bait flies into the doors. "He's fine; somehow he made it back to The Baratie." The boys all give out a sigh of relief, and Zoro sits up leaning against the side with his one sword in hand. It looks so lonely.

 **WE'RE COMING FOR YOU NAMI!**

We finally get closer to the Island which Nami stopped at, but I still wonder why she would go to an island where Arlong resides but I know my Baby Brother will have no one else but her as our Navigator. So it's our job to get her back. "W-we're finally here, Arlong Park!" Johnny stutters in panic at the front cowering behind the side of the boat next to Zoro. I narrow my eyes at the large building to the left of us as I look down seeing Zoro shift looking over his shoulder and Usopp also cowering behind the side of the ship.

"This is it? The base of the Fishman Pirate, Arlong, who survived the Grand Line." Usopp gulps loudly with fear as we drift closer to the shore. "Is Nami really in there?"

"Firstly, if Big Sis Nami is really here, then we should be able to find the Going Merry. So shall we check if it's really anchored at this island first?" Johnny reasons and I look down at him with a glare.

"Yeah, w-we should." Usopp agrees in a stutter, Zoro slams his sword into the deck and lifts himself up and moves his sword as if getting ready to fight.

"Prepare to rush in!" He declares and flicks his hilt up exposing the blade slightly freaking out the two scaredy-cats. I can't help myself and laugh at the idiot and his idea but try to calm myself down.

"W-why would we do that?!" Johnny freaks as he looks up at his idol with shock along with Usopp, but it was bedwetting terror as always.

"You moron! We don't know anything about this place!" Usopp snaps.

"Our opponents are Fishmen!" Johnny reasons in panic.

"We should plan out everything first," Usopp adds in reason, but Zoro isn't listening as he turns around to face the island with his foot resting on the top.

"Sorry, but I don't do those cowardly things! Luffy has asked me to bring that woman back. I don't care who the opponents are, but I'll surely get her back!" Zoro declares as we watch the spectacle.

"No, thanks, dummy," I remark and walk past the coward twins and grab Zoro by the shoulder.

"Let's go!" He commands, but I'm not dying or anyone else for right now as I use the same move as Uncle Mihawk and slam the side of the hand into the back of his neck knocking him unconscious long enough to get the twins to get some rope to tie him up to the cabin.

"We need to find the Going Merry, which is here," I tell them and glare at Johnny who cowers slightly back at my intense glare. Usopp gets out the binoculars he carries around in his man purse.

"There it is, I found it! It's the Going Merry! But why would it be over there?" Usopp asks confused, it was strange, but we need all the facts right now.

"So Big Sis Nami is definitely here just like Big Sis Dakota said," Johnny says as he rubs the side of his face which I may have slapped.

"What's the meaning of this?! Untie me!" Zoro demands but they fall on deaf ears.

"This part's to the East of Arlong Park, Cocoyashi Village," Johnny explains as he points out on the ship.

"But that is weird, why would she anchor so far away from the Park?" I question as we look at the map.

"Untie me, dammit!" Zoro demands louder this time; I push Usopp over to him to talk some sense into him.

"You've got deadly wounds all over you. So just sit there quietly and rest." Usopp tells him, and I look over to see he has his hand right over one of the wounds with Zoro gritting his teeth in pain. "I'll handle the rest. I'll bring that woman back!" He laughs.

"Just because we're not at Arlong Park, he sure is taking everything in stride," Johnny comments looking at me, and I nod in agreement before looking over Zoro who keeps demanding to be untied.

"I thought you'd learn by now I know better," I smirk making him more annoyed than ever.

"Prepare anchor! Head towards the Going Merry!" He orders and Johnny runs over to steering us towards our ship as Usopp stands at the bow with his arms crossed. "Now it's time for me to name my adventure to this uncharted island. The title will be, 'The Great Adventure of Captain Usopp'!" He declares then seems to freak out and run to cower by us.

"Is everything okay, Captain Usopp?" I question looking at him as he seems to grow pale, he points behind him, and I see three Fishmen on the dock appear to be talking about something.

"Fishmen!" Johnny and Usopp freak out.

"Full speed ahead!" Usopp quietly orders as we pass them.

"Aye, Cap't!" Johnny quietly complies.

"Why don't we dock here?!" Zoro exclaims but we 'sh' him as to not draw attention from the Fishmen.

"Did you see? Those were Fishmen over there! They're Arlong's men! You can't blame me!" Usopp whimpers but Zoro isn't having it as he uses his tied up feet to hit in him the face.

"You don't have the right to be mad!" Zoro roars.

"This area must've already been controlled by Arlong," I conclude and pry Usopp away from Zoro's feet.

"What should we do now?" Johnny asks.

"Alright, let's just say that we couldn't get Nami back," Usopp suggests, I hit him in the back of the head, he cries out in pain rubbing his head.

"Hurry up and untie me, idiot!" Zoro demands loudly meaning it gained the attention of the Fishmen as they dive into the water heading towards us making the coward twins to freak out.

"Abandon ship!" Usopp suggests and they race towards the bow.

"Hold on you two!" Zoro shouts, but they pay us no mind as they jump over making a swim for it.

"Farewell!" They shout as they leave us, I jump up onto the roof of the cabin laying flat hiding from the approaching Fishmen.

"Hey! At least untie me!" Zoro demands but we don't listen, and I feel a jolt from both sides meaning two Fishmen are now onboard the boat.

"What? Only one guy?" The chubby one asks his skinny friend as I peak my head around to look down at them and Zoro.

"Maybe he just drifted here from somewhere." The skinny one reasons.

"You can say so…" Zoro grits his teeth.

"I see… I guess the injury came from the crew of this ship torturing you." The Skinny one adds in.

"Anyways, let's bring him to Arlong before anything else." The Chubby one tells his friend, and they steer the boat over to the large building, where Arlong resides.

 **WE'RE COMING FOR YOU NAMI!**

As we get closer to the building, I shift more to the left and lean over making sure the two Fishmen can't see me as I pop open the side window of the cabin and slip inside out of view as we approach the building.

 **WE'RE COMING FOR YOU NAMI!**

We finally reach the gates to the building and drift to a stop in front as the Skinny one calls out to his fellow Fishmen. "We've found a suspicious man." We pass through as the two Fishmen stop in front of a throne with Arlong lazing there as I peer through the tiny window to see more Fishmen standing around on the ground around the little boat and some in the water either side.

"I've had enough of this," I mutter to myself and sneak back out of the tiny window and onto the deck of the boat still surrounded by FIshmen. I peer over the side to see them all looking at their leader the Fishman Arlong.

"I'll ask you once more… what's your purpose here?" He demands, looking down at the tied up Zoro.

"Like I said, I'm here to find a woman… you half-fish bastard!" Zoro snaps insulting the Fishmen hugely.

"Oh, this low-life human got guts. I'll let that slip by me this time. But you're not allowed to say half-fish ever again! Us Fishmen are evolved beings who can breathe underwater. With these fish abilities, it makes us superior to humans. With merely the power we behold is proof that we are far better than humans. You better get this in your head, the most superior beings on Earth are not humans, but us FIshmen! If humans were to go against us, it'd be defying the laws of nature!" Arlong spews out fantasy though I know from experience Fishmen are strong, but Fishmen like Arlong don't help others when they do things like this.

"I have gotten tired of your theory, Arlong!" I hear Nami's voice as she walks out of the building towards Arlong and his two guards with such confidence it had to be fake.

"Why are you so serious, Nami? You're special. You're our greatest cartographer! You never fail to draw the most accurate maps for me." Arlong praises her, so that's there relationship and I can see the desperation in her eyes.

"Our brain compositions are different, so it's obvious why I can." She snaps at him and looks slightly at him.

"Hey, Nami! What does he mean by 'our greatest cartographer'? Why are you so close to this guy?" Zoro demands and I use my demon speed to jump onto the roof of the building and into a random window to hide but still hear them.

 **WE'RE COMING FOR YOU NAMI!**

"What? You guys know each other?" Arlong asks them.

"Don't be ridiculous!" Nami denies quickly, but it was to quick adding suspicion amongst the Fishmen. "He's just another victim. I gained a lot of loot from them." She walks towards Zoro as he says this and I knew she was talking about my money and weapons. "You don't even realise you've been deceived. And you still come chasing after me. You're just plain stupid." She squats down in front of Zoro as she says this.

"So is this your true nature? And to think that you hated pirates…" Zoro inquires with a dark look on his handsome face.

"Surprised? Everything was an act. You'll understand better after seeing this…" She moves her left shoulder slightly to the side making a shoulder tattoo if the symbol of the Arlong Pirates more visible, he looks up to the top of the building where the flag flies confirming it. "I am a part of this invincible crew… an officer of Arlong's crew!" That information doesn't make sense if she was out of his control finding treasure but from what I can tell he doesn't have it. "See? You've been following me? From the beginning, I've only been using you. You guys aren't too shabby at fighting. You were a real useful bunch. Especially Dakota and her big pay." Nami comments making Arlong give out a chuckle.

"You were blindly deceived, weren't you? She can even forget her Mother's death for the sake of money. This woman's a cold-hearted witch." He provokes seeming to get a rise out of Nami as she stiffens at the mention of her Mother. "You shouldn't have underestimated her." Zoro glances up at Nami looking at her face.

"I get the picture now… I never did trust her from the beginning. I wouldn't be surprised if she was a murderer ever." Zoro comments, seeming to be playing at something.

"If you understand, just get lost already! You're an eyesore!" Nami snaps making Zoro begin his idiotic idea as he looks up at her smirking before bending his legs and diving back into the water.

"Why? Why did he jump into the pool all a sudden?" A Fishman with purple skin questions looking down at the water.

"Did anyone say a bad joke?" A Fishman with green skin jest as he points to the water.

"Nope, it's not like he slipped in because of one." A Fishman with blue skin replies.

"Then he must be trying to escape!" The chubby Fishman exclaims in shock.

"No way. His arms and legs are all tied up." The skinny one reasons. "How can he swim? I bet it's suicide."

"Forget him." Arlong orders, Zoro better have a good plan, or I will raise him from the dead to kill him again as I look out from the window gripping the side with a tight grip I could feel it crumbling under the force.

"Never imagined that he'd commit suicide." A Fishman comments as they all just look in as the bubbles keep floating to the top.

"He looked too good to just give up that easily." Another Fishman comments.

"Should we teach him on how to value life?" One asks his fellow Fishmen, but I knew they were just taunting as they all break out into light laughter making my blood begin to boil. Before I can move Nami dashes towards the edge of the platform towards the water stripping her sandals and dives into the water with that done, it goes quiet. She exposed herself in that one action, and now she has to think of a good excuse before she gets killed and Zoro along with her. Nami jumps out and holds onto the side of the concrete platform and pulls Zoro who breathes heavily from staying under for too long.

"She got him!"

"Hey! What are you doing Nami?" The Fishmen break out in questions, but Nami already has it covered.

"What do you think you're doing?" Nami asks as she looks down at Zoro as he coughs up water.

"Same to you, what do you think _you're_ doing?" He asks back and turns his head looking at her. "You can't even let one person die in front of you… quit the act already. Help me here, idiot! I thought I was a goner there." It seems to anger her as she gets to her feet and stomps onto his back.

"Stop messing with me!" She snaps and lifts him to his feet. "If you got involved with me anymore, you'll die!"

"I wonder about that…" Zoro smirks laughing a little.

"Wonderful bandages you've got there." She comments trying to play off her saving him.

"I can't afford new clothes. This is a substitute." He lies, but Nami sees through it and punches him in the gut winding him. He falls to the ground from the hit maybe even opening his wound; he kneels with his head on the floor trying to overcome the pain. Nami walks away from him as if she had done nothing.

"Hey, Nami! What are you planning for him?" The one on my left asks her seeming suspicious of her.

"Lock him up. I'll take care of it." Nami retorts as she walks towards them.

"Arlong! Arlong!" A Fishman calls out as he runs over to him.

"What's wrong, bud?" Arlong asks him looking over to him.

"Forgive me. There was a long-nosed guy who was with him, but I failed to capture him." He announces I glare thinking of the long-nosed sniper and where he is and if he can feel my anger from over here. "I think he fled into Cocoyashi Village, but…"

"Cocoyashi Village? Good timing. I got some errands there. Shall I pay them a visit?" He asks looking down at Nami as she clenches her fist in anger, so there was something in the village she wants to protect.

 **WE'RE COMING FOR YOU NAMI!**

He finally leaves with a few of his Fishmen to the village leaving Zoro unguarded, now it was my time to get him, beat him up then get us out of here. I walk around the building looking for my weapons, but still, I can't find them anywhere, I'll have to forget about them for now. I look at the window in front of me and run towards it jumping through.

 **WE'RE COMING FOR YOU NAMI!**

I land perfectly on the ground with little sound thanks to my assassination training and walk over to the room I saw them haul him into, it's open, and I see Nami in the doorway with a pathetic little knife in her hand.

 **WE'RE COMING FOR YOU NAMI!**

I sneak behind her as Zoro looks up to see her with the little knife, she walks towards him and slices his ropes freeing him, once she's done that she walks back to the door and looks over her shoulder at him. "Leave quickly. Before Arlong gets back." She orders him and leaves.

"Well, I guess I don't have to rescue you," I comment leaning against the wall next to him, he seems startled as if not noticing me and I smirk showing my little fangs. I throw him his only remaining sword, and he catches it looking it over for any damage. "You're welcome." I push off the wall and walk to the door with Zoro behind me.

 **WE'RE COMING FOR YOU NAMI!**

I walk calmly with Zoro following me close behind as we walk towards the main gate. "Well, well looks like we've got an escapee and intruder." A Fishman with purple skin comments gaining the attention of five other Fishmen.

"Seems so." Another replies and clenches his fists seeming to mean business.

"Look we just wanna get out of here, no trouble." I lie as I put my hand on the hilt of my two stolen swords and pull them out of their holds slicing the two Fishmen in front of me in their chests. They fall back onto the floor gaining the others attention, Zoro unsheathes his sword pointing it towards the approaching Fishmen.

"You said no trouble; this looks like trouble." Zoro comments as the Fishmen move in closer ready for a fight.

"Well, I was more concerned for you not to lose your way Mr Gets Lost In a Straight Line." I tease him as a Fishman meets the end of his blade as he attacks.

"I do not!" He denies as I kick a Fishman in the stomach before slicing him up the stomach.

"There's five left," I comment and dash towards two and slice both them down at the same time. Zoro slices one from behind me in his back as he was about to attack me, I turn to look at him smiling. "I didn't know you cared." I joke but don't get the reaction I was hoping for as he just shrugs it off and walks to take the last two down.

Everyone is finally taken down, Zoro walks over to a Fishman with a blue shirt and takes it from him and puts it on. "That's kinda gross," I comment as he walks towards Arlong's pretend thrown and sits down leaning back with his hands behind his head. "What are you doing?"

"She told me to escape, but the only thing we have to do lies here. I did promise Luffy that I'd get her back, didn't I? Now then, what should we do? Things are getting complicated." He reasons but I knew he was right so I take a chance and sit right on his lap.

"Don't mind if I sit here, right?" I ask not really caring, and I finally get the reaction I was hoping for, I can see the faintest blush on his cheeks as I look down at him, he glares at me but makes no move to push me off as I sit here on his lap. "You ever had a girlfriend?" I ask him out of the blue; he seems startled by my question.

"No!" He answers quickly, and I can't help but laugh.

"I had one once when I was a teenager living with Luffy; he always ran her out of my room. He's always been protective of me. Even though I'm way older than him." I tell him and look down at him; he seems almost disappointed. Almost.

"That's just the way Luffy is, I guess." He plays it off, and I look down at him and smile, he really is one of Luffy's good friends. He always makes the best of friends even in complete strangers even as a kid.

"Yeah, he is." I agree.

 **Done, the last Chapter of this book and onto the next story so this will be ON HOLD till around January 20th so please be patient and bare with, and I thank you all for your fantastic support, and the next books is Daughter Stien which is Soul Eater. See ya soon, DEADGIRLETERNAL OUT!**


	8. Turmoil & Truth

**Turmoil and Truth**

 **Dakota's POV:**

At Arlong Park as I sit in Zoro's lap waiting for Arlong and the rest of his merry fish minions to get back from the village. I lean back into Zoro's chest trying to be careful of his injury from Uncle Mihawk and crosses his leg over his knee and puts his hands behind his head. "Too slow." He mutters as I look around the ground at the fallen Fishmen we've taken down. "When Luffy gonna come?" He asks me seeming frustrated.

"I'm not sure, but he's never on time," I tell him as I get up from his lap and walk around thinking of a plan encase Arlong gets back.

"If he doesn't come in the next 5 minutes, I'm going to die of boredom," Zoro says, and I look back at him as I pick up one of the dead fishmen when a voice cuts through the silence.

"Oooh, oooh, oh! This one's awesome!" A voice exclaims, and I look over to see three fishing poles and one in the middle moves. "Even I. a member of Arlong's elite, Hachi-Hatchan can't pull it up. It must be a super great fish! I don't know from where you've come, but your gusto is East Blue's best…" I smirk as I see the Fishman pull himself by the shorts that are hooked. "Wh… what the? What? Oh, it was myself." He states, and the fishing poles snap in half, and he falls back down, I look over at Zoro as he gets up from the makeshift throne and we walk over to the wall, I climb up to see him getting back up with help from the wall. "Truly, my gusto is East Blue's best. Anything strange?" He questions as Zoro comes up next to me.

"Definitely strange." We say together, and he looks up at us with shock.

"Huh? Who the heck are you two?" He demands and seems to switch as he points to himself. "M-me? I'm Hatchan. Call me Hachi." He moves about pointing at himself.

"Are you a Fishman, too?" Zoro asks him an obvious question and answer.

"Of course! Of course!" Hachi answers with pride in his voice. "I'm a charming octopus, Fishman. Do I look like a human?"

"I guess not…" Zoro replies but can't say much more as Hachi cuts him off.

"Are you with the Marines or are just guests?" He asks us.

"Guest? Yeah, we're guests." I lie hoping to get some answers, and I get them.

"But you know, Arlong's not here right now, right?" Hachi seems to ask us.

"Yeah. where'd he go?" I ask him hoping to find his location.

"I heard that there was a long-nosed stranger that was trying to run away. They say another one was caught and held here though. He went to Cocoyashi Village to catch him." Hachi gives way too much, and I know who he's talking about, we both do.

"Usopp, huh?" Zoro asks, looking at me with a knowing look.

"We have to save him from himself," I whisper to him as I share a look with him. "That Cocoyashi Village, how do we get there?" I ask him, and we jump over the wall down next to Hachi.

"Get in," Hachi tells us as he points to a cauldron that's popping in the water next to him with one of his extra arms. "Guests, right? I'll take you there, swordsman, lady." He tells us, and I hop in with Zoro behind, I look over at Hachi as he gets into the water and pulls it with the ropes wrapped around it.

"Once we get to the village we need to find Usopp and wait for Luffy," I tell him in a hushed tone so Hachi can't hear us. "We need to talk to him about what we've found out about Nami."

…

We make it to the village port, and Hachi comes to a stop. "We've arrived." He announces, and Zoro climbs out before jumping down on the wooden deck, I climb up onto the rim of the cauldron, and my foot gets caught making me fall, but luckily Zoro catches me. I look up at him as he looks down at me, I see a small blush on his cheeks, and I can feel my own heating up as we look at each other. I straighten myself as Hachi announces we're in Cocoyashi Village and I straighten out my top as Zoro collects himself and Hachi seems oblivious to our awkward moment as he continues. "Arlong should be here, in this village."

"Yeah, thanks," Zoro replies seeming calm.

"Don't mention it, later." Hachi bids us goodbye before jumping into the water and paddling out, but he stops. "Oh! I didn't ask you your names!" I feel panic set in for a second, but he repeats the same thing. "Me? You want to hear my name again? It's Hatchan. Come again!"

"Strange guy…" Zoro comments once he finally leaves.

"Tell me about it." I agree, and Zoro takes off again in the wrong direction, and I take his hand and start dragging him in the right direction at a jog.

…

We make it to the village but can't seem to find Usopp anywhere; I look around the village for any sign of him as I keep it a hold of Zoro's hand making sure he doesn't wander off. "Excuse me but have you seen a long nose guy seeming almost terrified of everything?" I ask a random man, and he looks around seeming scared to answer me, and that makes me worry. "Answer me," I order him with force in my voice, and he starts sweating bullets.

"Th-the Fishmen took him." He quivers in fear and Zoro pushes the man to the side of the building and smashes his free hand on the wall next to the man's face, frightening him.

"What was that?" Zoro demands with a stern voice sending a tingle down my spine. "Usopp got caught?" He asks him, and he seems to loosen his lips.

"He was just taken to Arlong Park." The man answers even more terrified.

"That man was brave enough to go against Arlong. I'm sure he's been killed already!" A man from behind us states I snap my head in his direction with a mean glare that makes him shrink back.

"Shit," Zoro mutters to himself as he looks at his hand probably thinking the same thing I am, while we were killing the Fishmen back at Arlong Park Usopp was getting caught. "We need to go!" He yells and pulls me off into a run as we try to save our long-nosed friend.

"Usopp! Stay alive!" I shout as we run down the path leading towards Arlong Park.

…

As we run through the dense woods towards Arlong Park, I hear the sound of trees falling and snapping in the distance and come to a stop along with Zoro. I look around but can't see anything when the ground around us begins to rumble as something comes closer. "Yo! Zoro! Dakota!" I hear Luffy call out to us from our left and I turn my head to see him on a small boat skidding towards us fast. As the boat gets closer towards us, I jump into the air and land on the deck of the boat, but it hits into Zoro and continues to skid before landing harshly into a side of a hill. "We've arrived! We've arrived!" Luffy says as he clears the dirt off his hat with a sigh.

"You bastard… What the heck are you doing?" Zoro angrily demands as he pulls himself out from the rubble of the boat and points at me. "Why didn't you get me out of the way, as you did?"

"What do you mean?" Luffy asks him seeming confused as he puts his hat back on.

"It was a split second decision," I tell him shrugging my shoulders with a smirk.

"We've come to take Nami back. Still, haven't found her? Oh yeah. Where are Usopp and Johnny?" Luffy asks us, and I look at Zoro as we were just on our way to get Usopp from the Fishmen.

"Usopp? That's right! This isn't the time to be idling around." Zoro snaps as he gets up and runs off past the rest of us.

"What happened?" Luffy asks, and I run past him as well, but we stop looking back at them.  
"He was caught by Arlong," I tell him. "If we don't hurry he'll get killed."

"He's dead." Johnny cuts in with the worst thing ever.

"What?" I snap looking over at him to see him with a look of despair, and he falls to his knees down the path the boat made.

"It's too late. Big Bro Usopp is dead. He was killed." Johnny punches the ground with a sob. "By Big Sis Nami!" He shouts, and I narrow my eyes at him, this doesn't sound like the Nami we all know, but she did play us for some time, but still, something in my gut doesn't sit right with any of this.

"Is that the truth!?" Yosaku asks his partner with worry and Johnny walks over to us and sits down.

"Yeah, it's horrible… that woman's a witch! In order to obtain some hidden treasure in Cocoyashi Village for herself, she was kissing up to Arlong! And for that purpose, she killed without even thinking about it. She's a rotten-hearted low life! We've been fooled all this time!" Johnny rambles with strikes a cord with Luffy as he pounces on him grabbing his hoodie in his fists.

"Bastard! Say that one more time and I'll kill you!" Luffy warns him angrily as he shakes with rage at the cruel things Johnny was saying about Nami and drops his hat to the ground and I pick it up.

"Stop it Luffy, this has nothing to do with Johnny," Zoro tells him calmly.

"You don't have to believe me, but I saw it with my own eyes! I saw what she did to Big Bro Usopp!" Johnny argues, but that upsets Luffy more.

"You're making up crap! There's no way Nami would kill Usopp! We're friends!" Luffy rages out at him, and I walk over putting my hand on my baby Brother's shoulder to help calm him down before he does anything he'll regret.

"But I…" Johnny tries saying but gets cut off when Xoro looks to his left, and I look behind me to see Nami standing there boldly.

"Who's friends, Luffy?" She asks with a cocky attitude.

"Nami!" Luffy snaps out of it and turns around to look at her with the rest of us, and lets go of Johnny, I stand in front of Luffy if what Johnny says is true she could hurt him and I don't like that thought. "Why did you come here?" She asks us.

"What are you talking about? You're my companion. I came to get you." Luffy answers her and takes his back from me.

"How annoying," she replies with fake irritation in her voice.

"Nami?" Luffy questions seeming confused by her reaction to what he said.

"Friends? Don't make me laugh." Nami says, and she wears a blank look to hide her real emotions, one I know all too well. "You're more like a pathetic group of cooperations, don't you think?"

"Why you… I saw it with my own eyes. How… how dare you kill Big Bro Usopp!" Johnny snaps at her and gets up and stands in front of me as he points at Nami as she forms a cold stare at him.

"And your point is? You wanna try killing me to avenge him?" She asks us, and that catches my attention, and it seems to stop Johnny.

"What?!" He gulps.

" I'll tell you one thing. Right now Arlong wants to kill 'Roronoa Zoro and his posse.' All because Zoro and Dakota went and did something stupid. You guys may have these monster like powers, but you're no match for real monsters. Hang around this island long enough, and you guys will be killed for sure. Well… it doesn't concern me though." Nami warns us, and I have to say she is conflicting and something isn't right as I look at her and see she's tense as she looks at us with her cold stare.

"Her cool looks is still charming! His Nami-san! It's me; it's me, remember me?! Let's go on a cruise together!" Sanji gushes over Nami, and I turn around to see him waving his arms around, and Zoro moves over to him stopping him.

"You stay out of this! You'll just complicate things!" Zoro snaps at the cook which snaps him out of his love episode.

"What did you say?! My love is always a hurricane! Hey! Listen to me when I'm talking!" Sanji snaps at the swordsman, and I turn around to ignore their squabble.

"Where is Usopp?" I ask her, and the answer I'm going to get from her is one I don't want, I can feel it.

"At the bottom of the sea." She answers, and I hear Zoro clutch on his sword in anger, and he runs past me.

"Why you! Quit your bullshit!" Zoro snaps and runs towards her but Sanji stops him with a head kick but he ducks under the oncoming leg, and he draws his sword on Sanji.

"Do swordsman attack, women, too? Roronoa Zoro?" Sanji questions him seeming calm.

"What did you say? You don't even know what's going on so don't interfere!" Zoro snaps right back, all worked up and I move my arm out in front of Luffy to shield him if something or someone is going to attack or he tries to stop them.

"After an emotion loss, of course, you're irritable," Sanji replies still acting calm, but that seems to irritate Zoro more.

"Oi. you'd better watch what you say." Zoro warns him.

"Mind your own business, bastard!" Sanji warns him back, and Yosaku gets in the middle of them.

"Big Bros! Don't be bickering at an important time like this!" He tries telling them waving his arms around.

"That's right. If you're going to fight, do it off the island. You outsiders quit sticking your nose into this island's business. You still don't get it? The only reason I got close to you guys is for the money, nothing else. Now that you guys have nothing, you're no use to me. I'll return the ship. So why don't you find a navigator and head to the Grand Line, go find the One piece or whatever… just get the hell out of here! You're a bother! Goodbye." Nami says all this, and it still doesn't ring true to my ears, and she hides her hand covered in a black glove, and from the smell in the air it's a wound but why hide that.

"Nami," Luffy softly mutters as he looks at her and closes his eyes before falling back onto the ground.

"Big Bro Luffy!" Johnny exclaims in worry as I look behind at my brother and sigh at his stubborn nature.

"I'm going to sleep." Luffy states as he folds his arms under his head and closes his eyes.

"Sleep?!" Johnny exclaims again above my brother.

"Right now? In the middle of the road?" Yosaku asks him in confusion, looking down at my brother like the rest of us.

"I don't feel like leaving the island… I don't care what's happening here… I'm a bit sleepy… so, I'm sleeping." Luffy tells us as he begins to rest, and the two Bounty Hunter gawk at him in disbelief.

"Big Bro…" Johnny tries, but it falls on deaf ears as he's already fallen asleep fast and he gives out a loud snore to confirm.

"Then… DO WHATEVER YOU WANT! GO AHEAD AND DIE!" Nami screams at us, and I knew she really did want to save us in her own way, and she runs away, leaving us behind.

"Hey, Big Bro Zoro, what the hell are you thinking?!" Yosaku demands as I sit next to my sleeping brother watching over him as Sanji sits down on the grass and Zoro sits with a few steps away. "You're the target of Arlong and his gang, you know! Why don't you run away?!"

"Now that we know Nami is that kind of low-life, there's no reason for you to stay on this island!" Johnny snaps, but he seems to have a point in his own right, but Luffy won't have anyone else, but Nami as our navigator and that just means we'll have to fight for her.

"Reason to stay on this island? There is a reason. He's still staying here." Zoro states looking over at us as I brush the hair out of Luffy's eyes.

"Are you saying that even you're thinking of getting Nami back as a partner?" Yosaku asks with overzealous hand movements.

"I don't care what happens. He decides who becomes our navigator." Zoro answers and he's not wrong.

"The Captain and the First Mate have spoken," I smirk as I look over at them.

"Big Bro… okay." The boys agree with some hesitance in their tone of voice and posture, but they won't argue with their dear Big Bro. "I understand. Although it's only been a short while, our job to bring you guys here is done."

"I'm with him. I don't want to die in vain." Yosaku adds on, and I understand their point.

"Okay, take care," Zoro replies and looks over at them as they walk away.

"Well then, until we meet again…" Johnny waves his goodbye.

"Big Bro, you guys, take care too," Yosaku says his goodbyes as they walk away.

"You guys too." I wave goodbye, and they get smaller down the dirt path, and a steady breeze flows past rustling the leaves and our hair. I look down at Luffy as he still sleeps soundly not feeling anything and I look up as Sanji speaks.

"Hey, why was Nami-san crying back then?" He asks out of the blue.

"That woman… crying?" Zoro asks right back, but he's not wrong in some ways.

"She was crying in her heart," Sanji replies, and that seems to annoy Zoro as he makes a noise of protest.

"What? Crying tears of guilt for killing Usopp?" Zoro wonders but I don't think that's the answer.

"You're serious? You seriously think Nami-san killed that long-nose?" Sanji asks, and that seems to shut Zoro up, and I look between them.

"'Nami didn't kill him…' is that what you want to say?" Zoro asks him, and I look over at the two and give out a sigh.

"Isn't that right?" Sanji asks his own question, but he's sort of right.

"I dunno. I made that little servant lose it once already. She may have just killed him in a fit of rage." Zoro retorts, and it probably wasn't the best thing to say to a womaniser like Sanji.

"Little Servant!? WHAT'S LITTLE ABOUT NAMI-SAN'S CHEST!?" Sanji rages out, and I facepalm at his reaction.

"Is that all you think about?" I ask him and see Usopp getting in the way and I place my hands on either side of their attacks stopping them from hitting him in the head.

"He's still alive…?" Zoro questions, looking at the shocked Usopp and he faints from the shock onto the ground. I shake Luffy awake, he stirs and pushes me away like he always does, and I hit him in the face that wakes him up with a start, and he sits upright.

"Come on brother we have a friend to welcome back to the living," I tell him, and he turns around to see Usopp lying on the ground.

"USOPP! DID NAMI DO THIS TO YOU!?" Luffy freaks out over his unconscious friend shaking him a little as he holds him in his arms.

"No, uh, sorry. That was him and me." Sanji apologies for the both of them for scaring Usopp.

"IT WAS YOU," Zoro growls in denial from what Sanji said.

"It was both of you," I mutter which Zoro seems to hear as he glares my way.

"Luffy, you're here," Usopp says in a low voice staring up at him.

"Yeah, a little while back," Luffy replies in a matter of fact tone.

"I'm here too, nice to meet you!" Saji greets him politely, but Usopp is still upset about his almost hit as he jumps right up from Luffy's hold and waves his fist in Sanji's face.

"I'll kill you someday!" Usopp vows to him in anger.

"Hey, you're still fine even after that?" Sanji questions him with surprise, but that just upsets Usopp more.

"Shut the hell up!" Usopp yells at him waving his arms around in the air with a glare and snarl on his face.

"Oh, yeah, you were killed by Nami, right?" I ask him looking at him, and Luffy jumps up to the side with a big grin on his face.

"Damn him; Johnny was lying after all." Luffy smiles in celebration.

"Actually, there is some truth to it." Usopp corrects them, and they all stiffen. "It's more the opposite. Nami saved my life." He drops a bombshell. "So Nami bluffed the 'killing me off' part so I could escape. I think there's a reason for her being with the Fishmen Pirates."

"Of course." Sanji agrees with Usopp, and I have to say I think we all do even more so now.

"So what do we do now? Rush Arlong Park?" Zoro asks and seems way too eager to get into another fight with the FIshmen.

"Hold on! Before that, we should ask Nami for a better explanation!" Usopp rushes holding his hands out to the two idiots minus Luffy.

"Either way, it's useless." A woman's voice cuts in, and I turn my head to see a woman around my age with a tattoo and violet hair. "No matter what you guys do, Arlong's reign won't end."

"Nojiko!" Usopp calls out her name in surprise.

"Who's that?" Luffy asks pointing towards her and looks at Usopp.

"Nami's older sister." Usopp answers and I look her up and down but see nothing in common with them and shrug my shoulders.

"Nami'san's older sister?" Sanji gushes over the woman with hearts in his eyes as he gushes over her. "She's so pretty!"

"Not really my type," I mutter, but it seems Zoro hears me as he looks at me and I smile at him.

"What do you mean, 'it's useless'?" Zoro asks her and I have to agree with his question.

"Do us a favour." She tells us. "Don't meddle with this villages business anymore. Leave Nami alone. I'll tell you the reason why."

"The reason?" Sanji repeats, and I just sigh and share a look with Luffy, and he nods at me.

"You mean why she stays with the Fishmen?" Usopp asks her trying to narrow down what she's saying.

"Yes. once you hear the reason, you must leave this place." She negotiates but I know Luffy's stubbornness, and that won't work for him.

"All right, then tell us the reason or whatever," Usopp replies but I push Luffy forward and we walk off past the others.

"We'll pass," I tell them and they seem shocked by this. "We don't care about her past."

"Where are you going?" Sanji asks us, but I don't turn back as we keep walking away.

"A walk," Luffy replies back.

"What do you mean, a walk? You're not going to listen to the story?" Usopp asks us as we walk.

"Yeah, we'll pass." Luffy replies and I know why as I listened to her words carefully and well I don't care about her past.

"What's with them?" Nojiko asks, but I just tune the rest of it out and look at my baby brother in front of me.

"Well seems we have to start more trouble with other pirates before even stepping foot into the Grand Line." I laugh as we walk and look at my brother as he seems to be thinking about something in that brain of his.

"Sis, do you think I'm doing the right thing keeping Nami as our Navigator?" He asks me out of the blue, and I know the answer.

"Yeah, because if you can't see anyone else then there is no one else but Nami for the position and you know it. Both Zoro and I will stick to your decision Captain." I tell him, and I feel him calm down slightly with my answer.

"So where do we get food around here?" He asks, and I shake my head with a chuckle and take his hand and pull him towards the village as I feel a change in the window and not the good kind.

…

We walk back down the path where the boat had skidded towards Zoro and me, I look up to see three Fishmen standing, and one of them is Hachi, I lower my head, so he doesn't recognise me. "What? So they are Fishmen?" Luffy asks, and I nod my head in confirmation as we walk past them not even looking at them.

"Hey! Wait! Y-you!" Hachi calls out to us, and we stop, Luffy turns around to address them, but I stay facing away.

"Huh? Were you calling us?" Luffy asks them with his innocent look.

"Y-you… who are you? What are you doing on this island?" Hachi demands with force in his voice.

"What does it matter to you?" Luffy asks his own question.

"W-well, you've got a point there. Just like you said." Hachi stutters out seeming confused almost.

"I'm Luffy. This is Dakota, my sister." Luffy introduces us, and I stiffen hoping that Hachi doesn't recognise me or my name, but then I remember I never gave my name. "We're taking a walk."

"'Taking a walk?' Have a pleasant one! Smartass, where are you heading?" Hachi says as we continue to walk away but have to stop again.

"How should we know?" Luffy replies, and we continue on our walk towards the village leaving behind the three Fishmen.

…

Luffy and I make it to Cocoyashi Village, and we walk down the crowded street, I look around the shops and see a public official walking towards us with a group of Marines, I hide behind Luffy as he stands still gaping at the pinwheel on the Offical's hat. "What business do the Marines have with Nami?" The Offical asks the lead Marine who looks like a rat and he gives out a snicker (like a rat).

"You should remain quiet and escort us." The Mariharshlyne requests as they walk by.

"Why does he have a pinwheel on his head? That's TOO cool!" Luffy exclaims, and I facepalm and pulls him away to the side of the road and sit him down leaning against the palm tree.

"Luffy stop being stupid did you see the Marines that just walked past us not too long ago." I snap at him, but it just goes through him like always. "Man how did our brother deal with you all on his own once I left," I mutter under my breath as I sit down next to him and smack him upside the head.

"A pinwheel, huh? That was so cool. Oh! I just thought of a good move!" Luffy exclaims looking at me with excitement.

"Doctor! Doctor!" A man calls out running over to a group of people on the opposite side of the road from us; I look over to see what he was screaming about in such fear and see him carrying her along with Nami running with them.

"What happened, Gen-san?" The Doctor asks in a calm tone as he runs over to the group as well.

"Nojiko's been shot." He reports and that gains my attention as I sit up straight listening to their conversation.

"By who?" The Doctor inquires looking at the man, as he tends to the injured Nojiko, but that seems to gain Luffy's attention as he sits upright with excitement as he spots Nami again.

"The Marines." He answers and the Doctor repeats his response, and I just sigh.

"Nojiko." He says to her, but I don't hear her reply as she mumbles, and they seem to talk over her as Luffy walks over to them, and Nami gets up with a dark look on her face, and Luffy doesn't read it.

"Yo, Nami! What's up? Can I help with something?" He asks her, and she turns around with a mean glare.

"You're STILL here?!" Nami asks in a dark done before she grabs hold of Luffy's shirt and pulls him towards her. "This is none of your business! Get off this island!" She screams in his face before throwing him away and running off, I stand up and walk over to my idiot of a brother and pull him up by the back of his shirt and drag him back over to the palm tree where he sits sulking.

"What's her problem?" He asks, and I just shrug as I look at the injured girl and walk over.

"I'm no Doctor, but I think blood should be inside the human body," I comment looking down at he tries to stop the bleeding.

"Leave me alone." He snaps at me, but I just place my hand over her body.

" **Akuma Akuma:** **Arm and Power of Baalberith: Heal The Wound!"** I command, and I feel my hand glowing white as the blood returns to Nojino, and her wound closes up and expels the bullet. "You're welcome, and that isn't the last time I'm going to have to do that again," I mutter and walk away as the rest of the villagers get ready to take on Arlong, I walk over to Luffy and look down at him as he's calmed down some. "Luffy they're walking into their deaths," I warn him and see Nami walking over catching her breath with a big fake grin on her face as she walks towards them.

"Just wait… just wait a little longer! I'm going to try again! "I'll get the money again! It'll be easier this time! I have lots of experience! It's okay. You don't have to worry! Compared to that time… everyone I'm fine! I'm fine, so…" She tries to reassure them as she walks over but it doesn't seem to be working as the Offical I guess is Gen walks over to her and pulls her into a one-armed hug.

"That's enough. We know what futility is like. You fought well, for our sake. It must have been more painful for you to join that crew, more painful than it is to cut yourself. You fought well. " Gen tells Nami, and she tears up in his hold, and he releases her and looks at her. "Now, leave this village." He orders her shocking everyone.

"Gen-san." She calls out his name in disbelief.

"Do it, Nami!" Nojiko tells her younger sister.

"I can't." She disagrees, and they all say her name.

"You've got brains, and you've got a dream," Nojiko tells her with a severe look.

"Nojiko! Everybody!" Nami tries protesting, but they seem all to set. "I won't let you!" She pulls out a dagger pointing it at them. "Stop it, everybody! I don't want to see anyone get hurt anymore! You're gonna die!"

"We know," Gen tells her with no hesitation in his voice and takes hold of the blade scaring Nami of hurting him.

"It's useless. We've already decided in our hearts." The Doctor tells her and tears leak from Nami's eyes at their words.

"Get out of the way, Nami!" Gen orders her in a raised voice, and she steps back at his tone giving them enough time. "Let's go everybody!" He shouts and takes his sword out facing the crow. "Even if we can't win, we'll show them our pride!" He cheers, and they all cheer back and run off past the frozen Nami, and away to Arlong Park, she drops the dagger and falls to her knees with her tears falling, she grimaces and grabs her tattoo on her shoulder in anger. She grabs for the knife lying to her side and plunges it into her shoulder as she shouts out the name of the Fishman who has tormented them all for too long.

"Luffy.." I call his name, and he gets up as she continues to plunge the dagger into her arm and he finally stops her catching her wrist before she can hurt herself anymore.

"Luffy…" She mumbles through her tears as she looks up over her shoulder at him as he looms over her and she drops the dagger. "What do you want? You don't know anything you don't know what's been happening for the past eight years on this island."

"Yeah, I don't," Luffy answers truthfully and bluntly.

"This is none of your business! I told you to get off this island, didn't I?!" She asks him shaking.

"Yeah. You told me." Luffy again answers truthfully and bluntly.

"Go away!" She screams and swipes her hand bringing up dirt as if that's going to make Luffy leave. "You! Go away! Go away!" And she continues to say this as she throws dirt at him but still he doesn't budge, and she tires herself out and lets herself think and cries a little more before looking back up at him. "Luffy... Help me." She pleads, and for a few seconds it's quiet then he takes off his precious hat and places it on Nami's head before walking off.

"Dakota." He calls to me, and I push off the trunk of the tree and walk after him down the dirt street towards Arlong Park with Luffy, and he stops bending his kneels before springing up and shouts to the sky. "DAMN RIGHT!" He continues to walk towards the boys that finally arrived. "We're going." He orders us, and we all give our agreement.

…

 **3rd POV:**

As the five heroes walk in sync towards Arlong Park quickly for the sake of the villagers that got a good head start, the villagers stand outside Arlong Park#'s gates thanks to Johnny and Yosaku stopping them. "There!" The Bounty Hunters shout out as they stand up seeing the five coming closer, the villagers turn around to see the five.

"Them...?" Nojiko mutters, thinking back to her brief encounter with them.

"Those guys? What about them?" Gen asks the Bounty Hunters.

"If those guys can't stand up to them, then there's no hope, not only for this island but for the whole of East Blue," Yosaku tells them holding his injured arm.

"Remember the faces of those five, that have come to change the future," Johnny adds to his partner's words and the five get closer to them.

"Move," Luffy orders them as they get closer to the crowd, they part in the middle letting the five walk through towards the gate and Johnny, and Yosaku split as Luffy begins punching his way through the stone gate. The stone gate gives way and falls to pieces on the ground around them as debris floats in the air and soon fades away revealing Luffy to the Fishmen.

"What the...?" Arlong gapes down at Luffy as he straightens up with his fist raised ready.

"Which one's Arlong?" He asks ready for a fight.

 **TO BE CONTINUED….**

 **It's finally here! Thanks for the patience and I hope you like as the next chapter is the showdown between the Strawhat's vs the Fishmen! DEADGIRLETERNAL OUT!**


	9. TBS: Strawhat Pirates Vs Arlong Pirates

**THE BEGINNING OF THE SHOWDOWN: THE STRAWHAT PIRATES VS. THE ARLONG PIRATES**

 **3rd POV:**

" _Move," Luffy orders them as they get closer to the crowd, they part in the middle letting the five walk through towards the gate and Johnny, and Yosaku split as Luffy begins punching his way through the stone gate. The stone gate gives way and falls to pieces on the ground around them as debris floats in the air and soon fades away revealing Luffy to the Fishmen._

" _What the...?" Arlong gapes down at Luffy as he straightens up with his fist raised ready._

" _Which one's Arlong?" He asks ready for a fight._

…...

"Arlong? Arlong would be my name." Said Fishman answers from his throne not even looking at Luffy as he walks towards him.

"I'm Luffy." He introduces himself.

"Luffy? And who are you?" Arlong asks him confused why he's here.

"A pirate." Luffy answers short and Hachi along with Chew and Kuroobi.

"Oh! It's him! He's here! The pirate who likes to take walks!" Hachi exclaims in disbelief at seeing Luffy, but they don't spot Dakota quite yet.

"Not so fast there, you."

"Where do you think you're going?"

"You got some explaining to do to us first." Some Fishmen say as Luffy walks towards them and they block his path.

"C'mon, hey…"

"If you don't stop…" More try to stop Luffy, but he stretches his arms and hits their heads together knocking them to the ground.

"Out of the way!" Luffy shouts as they fall to the ground and shocks the other Fishmen and ticks Arlong off.

"And what does a pirate want with me?" Arlong asks him, but as his response, he stops in his tracks and grabs his wrist, pulling it back in a crouch and launches his fist into Arlong's face. The force of the punch knocks Arlong out of his throne, and he tumbles away to the other side of the compound wall, he hits it hard with the stone wall breaking with debris floating around. The Fishmen all gawk in shock at their leader being thrown around so easily, along with some of the villagers, Luffy stretches getting ready for the fight as the debris fades away to reveal an angry Arlong in a hole in the stone wall. "Who the hell are you?" Arlong demands, looking at Luffy as he breathes through his nose heavily recalling what state Nami was in before he left.

"DON'T YOU DARE MAKE MY NAVIGATOR CRY!" Luffy screams at him, and two Fishmen in the water entrance jump out.

"You bastard! How dare you hit Arlong!" They scream as they go to attack Luffy, but Sanji steps in to protect his Captain with a series of kicks, knocking them back.

"You weaklings stay out of this!" Sanji warns them as they go flying and walks over to stand next to Luffy. "Honestly… bursting in alone like that…"

"It's not like I'm going to lose even if I was alone," Luffy replies not even looking at Sanji or saying thank you.

"Idiot." Sanji snaps at him leaning over to his ear. "Since did I say I was worried about you? I'm just telling you not to hog all of the prey."

"Oh, okay." Luffy replies and Usopp walks over to them from the hole in the wall with the villagers and Dakota and Zoro walk behind him to make sure he doesn't turn back around.

"Oh… uh… I don't really mind. If you hog them all…" Usopp stutters out in fear and anxiety for the impending fight.

"That's some bravery you got there," Zoro comments as he steps to Usopp's side with Dakota on his right.

"That's him! It's that guy! The unknown swordsman! And that woman he was with!" Hachi outs the two, pointing at them.

"That's Roronoa Zoro," Kuroobi answers from the side.

"As I thought, I knew it! They're the ones who tricked me! They rode me- I mean I gave them a ride…" Hachi rambles trying to look stern when one of the fallen Fishmen gets back up.

"Look, that long-nose!" He announces which gains their attention as they all look over at Usopp.

"Huh?! But Nami killed that guy!" Hachi explains in disbelief like the rest of them.

"He's alive… which means…" Chew begins to say when Kuroobi cuts him off.

"I knew it! I was right all along. That woman's a traitor!" He seethes as he looks over at the group of pirates that are opposing them.

"Hey, who are those guys?" A villager questions as they watch and Johnny and Yosaku move their blades to block the entrance.

"Hold up!" They warn the villagers.

"He blew Arlong away?" The Doctor gapes along with the others.

"Unbelievable!"

"That's not something a normal human can do!" Gen gasps at the sight before them.

"Those guys…" Nojiko mutters.

"You still wanna fight?" Yosaku asks them expecting them to let the five handle it.

"If you guys join in, you'd just make things worse for them. You'd just get in the way." Johnny warns them against anything rash.

"But why are they fighting? What reason do they have to fight them?" Gen asks the Bounty Hunters in shock at the five strangers wanting to help them after so long.

"A reason?" Yosaku repeats already knowing the answer.

"Big Sis Nami was crying," Johnny tells them.

"She risked her life. Do we need any other reason?" Yosaku rhetorically asks as he sees the look on their faces.

"Pirates, eh? I see. So that's the relationship between you guys. I thought you were just Nami's victims. But…" Arlong laughs. "But what can five inferior beings possibly do?" He taunts them as Hachi walks over to them.

"You guys are idiots. You think Arlong will waste his time with the likes of you? He'll be enough for the job!" Hachi tells them and uses his cone-like mouth like a trumpet and calls out to the sea for the beast below; the villagers begin panicking as they all know who he's calling.

"Could it be?"

"It's coming…"

"That is…" A rumble comes from the sea as the beast comes forward, shaking the land and sea as it gets closer, as it does the waves get stronger and harsher.

"Wh-wh-what's going on?!" Usopp panics as the rumbling gets worse and a massive wave comes closer.

"You guys can be his next meal! Come out Mohmoo!" Hachi laughs, and a whirlpool appears in the middle of the water entrance, and the water rises around the beast.

"It's… it's a monster! The monster from the Grand Line that crushed Gosa Village!" Usopp screams on the spot as the water recedes revealing the battered and tearful monster. "It's huge!"

"That's…"

"It's the sea bull, Mohmoo!" They all panic as Mohmoo moves in closer to look at the five pirates and sees two he recognises in fear.

"Oh, it's just him," Luffy grumbles not impressed by the beast.

"So he was a Nakama of the Fishmen?" Sanji wonders and Mohmoo remembering his encounter with the too turns and leaves with his tail between his legs.

"Hold on! Mohmoo! Where do you think you're going?! Hey! Wait! Wait, I tell you! Mohmoo!" Hachi cries out for his friend as he leaves.

"Mohmoo… what are you doing?" Arlong asks him which strikes more fear into the sea bull as he stops in his tracks. "Well if you wanna run away, I won't stop you… would I Mohmoo?" He asks, but it changes the beasts mind as it turns around in full monster mode and goes to attack.

"It's coming!" Usopp screams, backing into the wall of the compound, waving his arms around in front of him in fear.

"Yeah! Get 'em! Follow Mohmoo!" The Fishmen cheer as they rally after the sea bull gets closer to the Strawhats.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Usopp keeps apologising, and Zoro begins unsheathing his sword, but Dakota stops him.

"I'll take care of him! This is a waste of time!" Luffy snaps and punches his fists together before planting his feet into the concrete to steady himself.

"What the hell is he gonna do?" Sanji asks with concern for his Captain.

"I've got a bad feeling about this," Dakota comments as they watch their Captain as he bends over and then straightens up as Fishmen race over to attack and he twists his abdomen around a few turns then grabs hold of Mohmoo's horns. The sea bull returns to his sad self at his impending pain, Luffy stretches out his arms as the rest watch.

"His arms stretched?!" Hachi gapes with the others.

"He possesses the powers of the Devil's Fruit?!" Arlong joins in on the gaping at Luffy.

"What?!"

"Who cares!"

"Let's go!" The Fishmen say and run after Luffy when Zoro sees Luffy's plan.

"Oi, run!" Zoro warns them and pushes Dakota back.

"What?! What's he gonna do?!" Sanji asks him in a panic.

"I dunno, but it's not gonna be pretty!" Zoro says and pushes them back away from Luffy.

" **Gomu Gomu no… Pinwheel!"** Luffy shouts as he swings Mohmoo around knocking the Fishmen that were too close away, he finally lets Mohmoo go, and he goes flying back into the open waters as Luffy tries catching his breath. "I didn't come here to fight these guys! The one I want to take down… IS YOU!" Luffy shouts and points over at Arlong as he sits in the hole he made in the wall.

"That's just perfect. I was just thinking about how I'd like to kill you now, too." Arlong smirks with an evil glint in his eyes as the others walk over to Luffy to scold his reckless plan.

"That was dangerous you idiot!" Sanji scolds him as he tries to knock some sense into him by hitting him on the head with his foot.

"DId you want to kill us too!" Usopp roars at him as Dakota and Zoro hang back.

"Huh? Luffy asks confused by their outrage.

"Such destructive power…"

"It's unbelievable that a human who can throw a monster like that even exists!"

"Is this battle of this world?" the villagers all ask gaping at what they all witnessed, and inside the compound, Luffy finally realises he is stuck in the concrete as he wiggles around trying to free his feet, but they won't budge.

"What the hell did you think you were doing?!" Usopp roars at Luffy.

"How are you do that to our crew!" Hachi yells at the five humans.

"Looks like we have to get our hands dirty now…" Kuroobi states.

"I think we need to teach them the difference between our species." Chew threatens the humans, but it only gets to one.

"So, the main forces have finally shown themselves…" Zoro beams looking at the three Fishmen in front of them.

"Arlong, please stay right where you are," Kuroobi tells him.

"If you fought out of rage, Arlong Park would turn to dust." Chew adds on.

"We'll take care of them!" Hachi bellows as he stands up.

"Yeah, do whatever you like." Arlong agrees with his main guys as Usopp sneaks away in fear, so far unnoticed by anyone.

"Scary…" Usopp whispers in fear looking at the remaining Fishmen.

"Hey, um… wait." Luffy tries gaining the others attention, but Hachi redirects it as he inhales a large breath.

"Looks like the octopus is up to something," Zoro warns the others as they look over at him.

"First, you boil the octopus in saltwater, slice, then flavour with olive oil and paprika. It makes a great appetiser." Sanji instructs, and Luffy leans forward waving his hand slightly.

"Um, wait, can you hear me out?" Luffy tries again to gain their attention, but still, Hachi has it.

"Take this!" He shouts out. " **Zero Visibility! Hachi Ink Jet!"** Hachi shouts as he squirts out a jet of ink towards the four and three of them dodge out of the way but Luffy, as he's stuck in the concrete, takes the full attack.

"You moron! Why didn't you dodge it?!" Zoro snaps at the ink covered Rubberman as he cries out covering his eyes.

"Aah! I can't see!" Luffy cries out.

"And to finish you off," Hachi says as he picks up a sizeable block of rubble with ease.

"Hey! Luffy, run away!" Usopp shouts out to his Captain as Hachi walks slowly and carefully towards him.

"Yeah, that's just the problem. I can't seem to move…" Luffy tells them as he tries loosening his feet in the concrete, with a shadow from a large chunk of wall overcasting him.

"Huh?" Sanji asks as he gets up looking over at Luffy.

"My feet won't come out!" Luffy exclaims in a panic still trying to get his feet out.

"Idiot! DIdn't you stick 'em into the ground in the first place!?" Usopp shouts his outrage and panic from his hiding spot.

"What was he thinking…" Dakota mutters to herself as she shakes her head at her little brother.

"On the rocks!" Hachi shouts as he drops the stone wall piece on top of Luffy with a loud thud, a second later a crack appears in the middle of the part, that spreads out and cracks under the hit to reveal Sanji had kicked the centre breaking the stone saving Luffy.

"This is just great," Sanji mutters in disappointed.

"Cool! Cool! Nice one! Nice one!" Luffy cheers his cook.

"Looks like I ended up with a complete moron for my Captain," Sanji complains lightly.

"We're on the same boat." Zoro agrees.

"How do you think I feel," Dakota adds thinking back to her time with Luffy growing up.

"He's… awesome!" Usopp gasps in awe of his power.

"Well, at least it's a hundred times better than being with a low-life bunch that hurts a lady," Sanji says looking at the Fishmen.

"A lady? You came here all the way here for 'that kind' of woman? You guys make me laugh." Kuroobi mocks them.

"'That kind' of woman? Say that about Nami'san again, and I'll cook you in a buttered frying pan. Making you into a Meuniere, Fishman!" Sanji threatens him pointing at Kuroobi.

"You look like you can fight, for a human. But a pirate who fights by chivalry can only be mediocre." Kuroobi warns him with his arms crossed.

"Why don't you see for yourself, if my chivalry is mediocre? I was raised by an unbeatable pirate." Sanji retorts back at the Fishman.

"Seems like you're really unfamiliar with the superiority of the Fishmen race." Kuroobi snaps cracking his knuckles, Sanji clicks his teeth in annoyance as Kuroobi readies for a fight. Meanwhile, Usopp grabs hold of Luffy under his arms and pulls him away hoping to pry his feet out of the concrete.

"I still ain't getting free," Luffy tells him in different as his legs stretch.

"Not yet!? Can't you pull 'em out yet?!" Usopp asks him straining as he continues to stretch out Luffy's legs.

"Not yet," Luffy answers the same. "I don't think I can get out just by stretching."

"Are you even trying!?" Usopp roars at Luffy. "Do you even want to free your legs?!"

"What are those two fooling around for? This is Arlong Park for crying out loud. I'll kill you!" Hachi shouts and picks up a piece of the stone near Luffy's feet as Usopp dashes trying to outrun him.

"Crap, crap… come on, dammit, get 'em out! We gotta get outta here!" Usopp panics as he runs with Luffy under his arm.

"Wait!" Hachi calls out to them.

"Hey, Octopus. Those two are busy. I'll be your opponent." Zoro tells him, pointing his sword at Hachi.

"Nyu, Roronoa Zoro! I almost forgot about you! How dare you trick me!" Hachi shouts as he drops the stone onto the ground by Zoro as he dodges out of the way in time. He lands on the ground a fair bit behind Hachi. "That's right! Then you also killed some of my brethren!"

"I'm not interested in any of that old news. And it wasn't just me, the redhead over there helped. Your reason for wanting me dead… I don't care about it. The situations changed. It's not you who wants to kill us. It's us who want to kill YOU!" Zoro tells him as he reveals his sword as the two stand off from one another.

"Alright, Zoro… I'll let you have that octopus. Nice." Usopp says and lets go of Luffy who slings back to where his feet are planted, Usopp finally sees his mistake. "Aahh! Luffy!" Luffy swings around towards Chew who looks over to see him and Usopp, but too late as Luffy knocks into him throwing him away onto his back with a cry.

"I'm back to where I started." Luffy sighs as he wobbles side to side as Chew gets up.

"Bastard!" Chew snaps looking over to them.

"Goodbye." Usopp cries with tears trickling down his face from under his goggles.

"Looks like you really do want to be killed…" Chew clips, looking over at Usopp and gets up to his feet and runs towards him, Usopp slowly turns around before bolting out the compound past the villagers and Bounty Hunters.

"Isn't that the guys who saved Gen-san?" A man asks watching him disappear down the dirt path and Chew jogs up to the hole with the villagers standing.  
"Aren't you guys from Cocoyashi Village? Seeing that you have all these weapons, I can assume, you guys are rebelling? You guys are all-" Chew tries threatening them but is interrupted by flames thanks to Usopp.

" **Flaming Star!"** Usopp calls out as Chew catches on fire and falls back away from the villagers.

"Big Bro Usopp!" Johnny calls out, and the flames stop leaving Chew on his back again.

"Your opponent is ME!" Usopp shouts over a far distance away from the Fishman.

"If you wanna die so badly, I'll kill you right now!" Chew roars as he gives chase again with Usopp running away with Chew close behind.

"What's with that guy?" Gen asks as he and the rest of the villagers look back as the two of them run down the dirt path.

"He stands up to fight, and then he runs away… He's a strange one." The Doctor adds on.

…...

Usopp races down the dirt path with Chew close behind him as he breathes heavy trying not to get free of him as he cries out. "Get back here, you long-nose!" Chew shouts ahead at him.

"Hey, same with your mouth!" Usopp shouts back as they run further away from Arlong Park.

…...

Back at Arlong Park, Arlong has enough and gets up walking over towards his subordinates. "Same old, same old. Move! This is getting boring. I just can't stand watching." Arlong snaps as he approaches them.

"Arlong-san, I thought we asked you not to get violent here," Kuroobi replies looking at their leader.

"I'm not going to; I just thought of an interesting game," Arlong replies back smirking.

"A game?" Hachi repeats confused.

"I'm gonna DESTROY YOU!" Luffy shouts as he goes to punch Arlong, extending his arm but Arlong just slightly moves his head to the side making Luffy miss. As Luffy retreats his hand back to him, but Arlong grabs hold before it returns.

"Do you guys seriously think you can win against us?" Arlong asks the intruders.

"So, what about it?" Sanji asks him back.

"Of course, we think that you idiot! Let go of my hand!" Luffy interrupts with his idiotic timing.

"Seems like he wants to say something." Zoro sneers and clicks his sword slightly as a threat when Arlong kneels in front of Luffy with his hand still in his webbed hand and punches the concrete in front of his feet. He keeps his hand in the concrete and rips it up with Luffy's feet still in there.

"Whoa! What the, what's going on!?" Luffy cries out as Arlong holds him over his head with both hands.

"People who possess the power of the Devil's Fruit are dead weights! Well, even if you didn't have those powers, you'd still stink in this situation!" Arlong laughs and the others catch on with his idea.

"He can't be thinking… into the sea!?" Zoro exclaims with fear along with Sanji and Dakota.

" **Gomu Gomu no Pistol!"** Luffy shouts as he punches Arlong, but he catches Luffy's fist in his mouth and bites down drawing blood as he laughs and Luffy lets out a cry of pain.

"Idiot!" Arlong snaps lowly and Luffy tries to get himself free by biting down on Arlong's arm.

"Why you!" Arlong shouts letting go of Luffy's arm as he attacks Arlong's own arm.

"Useless," Kuroobi mutters watching the scene in front of them as Arlong throws Luffy away into the water in front of them.

"Luffy!" Dakota and Zoro call out to him in a panic as they watch their Captain fly away into the water outside the Park.

"Bastard!" Sanji grits his teeth watching as Luffy splashes down into the water, Arlong laughs maniacally, and Sanji runs forward.

"I'm coming to save-!" Sanji begins to say, but Zoro stops him in his steps.

"Idiot! Don't get worked up!" Zoro snaps at the blonde chef.

"If you jump in, you'll be right where they want you to be! The Fishmen have the upper hand underwater! There's only one way to save Luffy." Dakota tells Sanji with a look of seriousness in her eyes.

"Take care of these guys and the leftover minions quickly and then jump into the water? Let's do it! We don't have much time." Sanji agrees.

"Right" Zoro agrees as the three of them all ready for a fight.

"How many seconds do you think he'll last? That Rubberman." Arlong wonders aloud to frustrate the three humans.

"Ah, so this is the game you were talking about." Hachi gleams.

"I see." Kuroobi agrees as they look down on the humans in front of them and Hachi lets out a chuckle.

"The fish is yours," Zoro states as he holds up his sword.

"You got the octopus." Sanji retorts as he readies for his fight against Kuroobi and takes a drag from his cigarette.

"I've got the minions," Dakota adds in smirking looking around the leftovers that had somehow missed the swirling sea bull.

…...

Down below the water's surface, Luffy struggles to hold his breath as bubbles float to the top as he keeps his hands over his mouth and nose to stop himself.

…...

By the first hole in the stone wall where the villagers and Johnny and Yosaku stand the two Bounty Hunters hang onto the wall in fear for the Rubberman at the bottom of the sea bed. "Oh no! He can't do anything by himself like that!" Yosaku shouts in a panic.

"Big Bro Luffy is gonna die!" Johnny cries out from behind, and they watch the bubbles slowly become less before disappearing into nothing and again Arlong gives out a cruel laugh.

"You can't even breathe underwater. Humans are such inferior beings." Arlong chuckles from his throne.

"Come on!" Zoro yells out "I'm your opponent, you freakin' octopus!" Said octopus gives out a chuckle.

"Game! A game!" Hachi giggles still sticking to what Arlong had said minutes ago.

"I'll finish this up in 5 seconds…." Zoro grunts as he runs towards the Fishmen with Sanji next to him as Dakota stays where she is.

"No, 3 seconds…" Sanji boasts not focusing on the fight at hand.

"Don't be in such a hurry! No matter what happens, you have no hope of living after this!" Kuroobi snaps as Sanji goes for a kick, but Kuroobi blocks the blow.

 **"Hachi Ink Jet!"** Hachi shouts and shoots a jet of ink towards Zoro, and he dodges it again.

"Hold on! Luffy!" Zoro shouts as the four leftover Fishmen walk around Dakota with smirks.

…...

In the countryside of the island, Usopp continues to run with Chew behind him not far off. "I'M DOOMED!" Usopp screams as he continues to run.

 **TO BE CONTINUED….**


	10. Strawhat Pirates Vs Arlong Pirates Pt 1

**SHOWDOWN: THE STRAWHAT PIRATES VS. THE ARLONG PIRATES PART ONE**

 **Dakota's POV:**

"What do you think? Interesting game, isn't it? We'll see how long that Rubberman can last. Or will you guys die before he does?" Arlong asks and gives out another chuckle as his fish minions circle around me ready for a fight.

"I'll beat this jerks ass real quick! Then, I'll save you Luffy!" Zoro shouts as he runs at Hachi and he goes for another jet of ink at Zoro but he dodges-. I don't see the rest as one of the Fishmen takes a swing at me, but I grab a hold and swing him over my shoulder after kicking him in the chest, and he falls onto his back winded. I turn to the other three as they stare at their fallen friend and another comes for a fight, but the one I knocked down comes up behind me and grabs me around my chest. I struggle in his grip and swing my leg up kicking him in the head, and he lets go, and I lean forward and grab hold of the swords at my hips.

When I notice Zoro stagger in his step standing still, with his sword clutched in his hands as sweat beads down his forehead, and he soon falls to the ground face first with heavy breathing as he lies there. I go to move but the Fishmen cut me off as all I can do is try to save either Luffy or Zoro is get through these Fishmen but even then I can only save one. I see a blonde shape fly past my vision into the far wall behind me and through it. Creating a hole, I look over to see that it was Sanji, but I have my own troubles as I try to get towards Zoro to help, forgetting about the Fishmen. I feel a sharp pain in my abdomen, and I look down to see one of the Fishmen with a sharp sword in his hand, and the pointy end is in my stomach. I look up at him in shock as he pulls it out and they all laugh as my knees buckle under me, and I fall face first onto the concrete, and I hear the sounds of Arlong giving a chuckle and sounds of panic from Yosaku and Johnny along with the villagers before blacking out.

 **3rd POV:**

The five pirates who went against Arlong three of them lie on the ground with injuries, one is currently drowning, and only one is running for his life with a Fishmen not far behind him. Luffy struggles to hold his breath underwater as Nojiko and Gen sneak off to save him. Zoro lies on the ground in pain from his chest wound by Mihawk. Sanji lies facing the sky unconscious thanks to Kuroobi's killer punch. Usopp is running for his life with Chew chasing him in the countryside. Dakota is slowly bleeding to death as the Fishmen watch sadistically. "It's over now Arlong-san. What should we do with Roronoa Zoro and the girl?" Kuroobi asks as they stand, looking at the injured pirates.

"Toss their asses into the sea." Arlong answers. "How pathetic… how boring…"

"Nyu? It's over?" Hachi asks confused as he holds his six swords as he looks around.

"But they really did make a mess around here…" Kuroobi complains as he looks around at the compound to see his fellow Fishmen lying around either dead or unconscious and pieces of the walls crumbling around along with the ground and buildings.

"That's no big deal. It's alright as long as Arlong Park still stands." Arlong says, and Kuroobi agrees with his statement.

"You bastard! Roronoa Zoro! He was scared to death before I got to show my skills! I would've been so famous if you had fallen by my blades! Well, it doesn't matter. Humans still can't compete against me and my wonderful, amazing six-sword style! You can't touch me!" Hachi shouts and moves his swords around creating a vortex that lifts the debris of the short fight flying into the strong wind the Fishman creates. The villagers and Bounty Hunters watch this with fear as it grows higher and more debris swirls around in the strong wind.

"That's enough, Hachi. I understand how you feel, but if you get serious, it might get dangerous. You want to destroy Arlong Park?" Kuroobi asks him looking over his shoulder at the Octopus Fishman, and he slows down his movements

"Huh? Huh? Oh yeah, I'm sorry. I just forgot myself for a minute there…" Hachi apologises and cuts the vortex off, and it flies off into the sky.

"It's fine, forget it," Kuroobi tells him, but he still apologises.

"Right, sorry, sorry."

"Six-sword style, huh? You're full of crap!" Zoro snaps as he gains consciousness again and struggles to get to his feet and gains everyone's attention.

"Big Bro!" Johnny screams out as he watches him stand hunched over.

"Roronoa Zoro!" Hachi exclaims in shock.

"Let me just make one thing very clear, Octopus. There is someone I must meet again. And until that day…" Zoro says and looks up at them through hooded eyes. "Not even Death himself can take my life away or Dakota!"

….

In the countryside, Usopp continues to run for his life as Chew chases after him along the dirt path screaming. "Shit! How fast can this long-nose run?! His speed and stamina are incredible -chu~." Chew says as he runs after Usopp, he continues to run and then comes to a stop, turning around to face the Fishman.

"Huh?! He's not following me anymore? Damn, that's too bad! Looks like I left him in my dust… he may look like a fish in water, but he's just a turtle on land! Heeee….. Turtle….! Yeah, yeah! Turtle, turtle! If you really think you can catch me try, try! I'll dust your ass again, you lazy, lazy turtle, yeeahh!" Usopp celebrates but too soon as Chew comes up behind him not impressed by his taunts.

"Wouldn't that be you? The one who's being lazy, I mean?" Chew asks him as he stands tall over the silent statue of Usopp and then Usopp books it running away from Chew again gaining speed. "Wait!" Chew shouts after him as he continues the chase.

….

Underwater Nojiko and Gen work at trying to free Luffy, Nojiko holding Luffy and Gen works a heavy hammer at the concrete trying to break Luffy's feet free. They look at each other thinking on what to do and then remember his fight with Mohmoo and look at each other with mouths agape.

….

Upon ground outside Arlong Park, Sanji gains consciousness and roots around his pocket getting out his cigarette's and matches, he lights his cigarette and puts it in his mouth as he looks up at the sky. Sanji takes a drag from his cigarette before sitting up; the village Doctor turns around to see him, his mouth drops and exclaims. "He's still alive, that guy!"

"Big Bro! Big Bro Cook!" Johnny and Yasoku exclaim in shock as Sanji walks towards the hole in the wall he'd made.

"That fish bastard's punch is level 40? Then the shitty old man's kicks I always took must've been level 400?" Sanji comments as he stands by the hole in the wall.

….

Inside Arlong Park Zoro still standing hunched over in front of Hachi clutching his sword and grabs his bandana from his arm. "What's with you, Roronoa Zoro? Why do you keep pushing yourself to go on? I don't think you can defeat me and my six swords as you are. I think anyone in the world would say the same…" Hachi says as Zoro ties his bandana around his head while struggling to breathe.

"Shut up; it's none of your business…" Zoro snaps at him with heavy breathing.

….

At the broken gate with the villagers and Bounty Hunters watching the swordsman as he sweats in front of the Fishman. "This isn't good... Big Bro's condition… Big Sis isn't moving…" Yosaku stutters as they watch.

"The fever's probably making him lose conciseness. He's delirious. The hit she took was probably fatal. If that wound opens again, he'll die without a doubt along with the girl." The village Doctor tells the harsh words.

"But he doesn't have time to think about that now!" Johnny shouts.

"Right! If there's anyone who knows that, it's Big Bro!" Yosaku shouts in too with his fists clenched. ' _I just hope Dakota hangs on.'_

….

"I'll show you… three sword style." Zoro growls out glaring at the six armed Fishman.

"Nyu?" Hachi questions, looking at him in confusion as he stands there.

"Yosaku, Johnny! Lend me your swords!" Zoro shouts back at them keeping an eye of the Fishman.

"Of course, Big Bro!" They shout back at him as they go to get their swords and they see the dinks and marks on the blades and look over at Dakota as she lies in a pool of blood with two swords strapped to her hips. "Hang on Big Bro!" They shout and dash over to Dakota and take the swords from her before throwing them at Zoro. "Catch!" They shout and look down at her pale skin. "Big Bro, here they come! Don't you want to use them?" They shout by Dakota's body as the swords continue to spin closer to Zoro as he stands still not moving a muscle and they roll Dakota onto her front and see her peaceful face as she lies unconscious.

"Hah! Now you'll see the barrier that two-handed humans will never surpass. Six-sword style." Hachi exclaims and gets ready to cut him down.

"Big Bro, watch out!" The boys shout out as the swords almost reach him from behind spinning in the air.

" **Octopus Leg Dance!"** Hachi yells as he arms become like jelly as they wave around in front of Zoro looming over him.

"Big Bro!" The Boys shout as the swords meet Zoro's hands and he clutches onto them as he swings down with his right and dodges Hachi's swings and blades that miss his bodies.

" **Three-sword style: Bleeding the Wolf!"** Zoro calmly says as he waits for the hits to take effect, he hears Hachi cry out in pain as his hits meet their mark and the remaining Fishmen watch with shock and irritation as Zoro stands, breathing heavily and sweating from the fever.

"Got him!" Yosaku shouts with excitement from Dakota's side.

"The six-swords didn't touch him! Big Bro's awesome!" Johnny exclaims along with his partner at their role model.

"That takes such concentration… and persistence as well!" The Doctor mutters in shock as he watches the scene play out in front of them.

"How could this be?" Hachi question as he gets up with blood spills out of the cuts Zoro made and turns around to face the swordsman. "I'm really mad now! I'm going to kill you! Just think about it _normally,_ would you? You cannot match six swords when you can only carry three yourself! Don't you get it!?" Hachi rages out moving his arms around in annoyance.

"Normally? That's a major miscalculation." Zoro growls out as he thinks of his past and the vow he made and of Dakota as he clutches her swords in his hands. "Six swords… numbers don't matter!" Zoro turns around to face Hachi. "I may only have three swords, but yours will NEVER be as heavy as mine!" He says as he shakes from the pain.

"The weight, is it? Now I understand. Your swords are heavier? Eh? But don't think that'll help. Each of my swords weighs 300kg, you know! They're much heavier and more powerful than any of your swords, you moron!" Hachi boasts stupidly.

"It's useless talking to an idiot…" Zoro mutters.

" **Six-sword style: Octopus Pot Stance! New year!"** Hachi shouts as he narrows in his swords towards Zoro and dashes towards him, but he moves his swords to block the oncoming blades. " **Kite Flying!"** Hachi backs away then when Zoro hesitates Hachi headbutts straight into Zoro's chest, winding him. " **Body Shredder!"** The force of the hit knocks Zoro flying into the air.

"That's dirty! Aiming for his wound!" Yosaku shouts out in anger at the Octopus Fishman's actions, and he flies up to meet the swordsman.

"Watch out! Big Bro!" They call out for him as he gets hit and falls to the ground. "Big Bro's gonna be killed!" Hachi runs towards the falling swordsman swords at the ready.

"You won't hit the ground alive. **Six-Sword Style: Secret Attack, Six-Sword Waltz!"** He stands underneath the falling swordsman and moves the six-swords in a windmill fashion making it completely deadly. "Touch these for a second, and you're mincemeat! You don't have a chance!" Hachi chuckles as Zoro falls ever closer to the circling blades below him.

"Big Bro!" Yosaku shouts and Zoro falls to the blades, and they all hear the strangled cries, and the sound of blades, the villagers and the Bounty Hunters watch in horror as the Fishmen all smirk at the scene. But it all changes when Zoro lands on his feet unharmed, and Hachi groans in pain dropping some of his swords and the Fishmen growl in anger. "Big Bro!" The boys shout out in happiness at his safe landing, Hachi looks at his bleeding hands that the heavily breathing swordsman in front of him crouching caused.

"That jerk, he spun with me in the air and did somersaults on my swords! Then he cut my hands like some kind of circus trick! Quit joking around! I'm not some sideshow sword-swallowing act! Now I'm REALLY PISSED, and I'm going to destroy you!" Hachi bellows as he has a tantrum like a child and Zoro staggers slightly forward from the pain and the Bounty Hunters watch him unknown to them as Dakota wiggles her fingers slightly as she gains consciousness again and Zoro narrows his eyes thinking about Mihawk and Hachi gets ready for his next attack on the greenette. " **New Year!"** Hachi shouts as he narrows his swords towards Zoro's back as he gets closer Zoro lifts his swords and spins around snapping the swords in half and Zoro spins sending Hachi flies up in the air.

" **Tornado!"** Zoro shouts as Hachi floats in the air, the onlookers watch in either amazement or annoyance, Hachi slowly falls to the ground with the pieces of his swords floating around him as they all fall towards the ground.

"Hachi?" Arlong mutters under his breath as he looks up at his fellow Fishman.

"How? Th-re-Sw-or-d-st-yl-e… how could?" Hachi ponders as he falls looking up at the sunlight that escaped the clouds.

"Octopus jerk… _now_ do you understand… how much heavier my swords are? You satisfied?" Zoro says as Hachi falls hard on the ground behind him with debris floating around him.

Zoro collapses down on the ground with heavy breathing as he holds his treasured sword. "I'm sorry, Octopus, but I'm not impressed. I have to hurry and rescue Luffy." Zoro says still catching his breath.

"Big Bro, look out!" Yosaku shouts out seeing Kuroobi standing over Zoro ready to strike.

"You fiend! How could you do that to Hachi?!" Kuroobi snaps and goes to hit Zoro, but Sanji kicks Kuroobi away.

"Bastard! Yeah, you thought you'd gotten rid of me that easily, eh?" Sanji retorts casually.

"Hm? I didn't think there was anyone who could stand up to my punch, not in all of East Blue." Kuroobi gapes slightly looking at the beaten Sanji in front of him.

"Oh, I bet you'll find plenty who could. Especially, in a certain sea restaurant." Sanji replies with a smirk and cigarette in his mouth.

"You've been fooled!" Kuroobi growls and the air around them is tense till Zoro ruins it as he tilts over beginning to move towards the water.

"Big Bro, don't move!" Johnny cries out to him in worry as he watches Zoro try to crawl to the water.

"Hey, you! In your condition, your ass is as good as dead if you go underwater." Sanji warns the injured swordsman.

"Shut the hell up! He's almost done for! He can't wait for your fight to finish!" Zoro snaps at him.

"Yeah, I know about that. I know there's no time left. That's why I'm stopping _you._ You're the one who should shut the hell up and look after Dakota!" Sanji warns Zoro as he takes his shoes and blazer off. "So you don't complain about me doing THIS!" He shouts and dives into the water, Kuroobi laughs at this.

"Interesting! He wants to challenge a Fishman in the water! I've never met a bigger fool! Kuroobi laughs in delight.

"You dumbass! An underwater battle is just what they want!" Zoro shouts into the water though Sanji can't hear him and Kuroobi dives in after the cook; he looks over at Yosaku and Johnny as they sit by Dakota's body. ' _Why didn't I notice her before, come on Dakota pull through for Luffy, for Nami for me."_

….

Underwater Sanji swims towards Luffy and sees Gen pumping Luffy's chest as his neck stretches out away and understands as he swims towards them, but Kuroobi catches up and hits him in the back of the neck with his arm. " **Fishman Karate: Arm Blade Chop!"** Kuroobi shouts underwater as the hit shocks Sanji and he opens his mouth in pain from the blow.

….

On the ground, Arlong lets out another laugh. "This is getting interesting… what do you humans intend to do next?" Arlong lets out another laugh, and the onlookers look on in horror for Sanji's fate underwater and Dakota wiggles her fingers again more as she slowly gains conciseness.

….

On the dirt path in the countryside of the island, Usopp and Chew run after one another. "He's so stubborn!" Usopp cries out as he continues to run away from the Fishman not far behind him and catching up.

….

Underwater Kuroobi watches Gen try to resuscitate Luffy and narrows his eyes down at them. "So it's the guy from Cocoyashi Village. What useless effort…" Kuroobi states and Gen looks up at him in worry. "If you're trying to extend his life, what good is it if you're going to die anyway? I'll end it right now!" He goes to attack and get close, but Sanji is quick as he pulls Kuroobi's ponytail back shocking him. "You… mere human!" He snaps and pulls his hair out of Sanji's grip. "You're really trying to challenge me underwater? Holding your breath with all your might, like an inferior creature would! As you wish! Let's do it! **Fishman Karate: Hair Belt!"** He shouts and spins around letting his hair wrap around Sanji's waist, and he pulls at the end of his hair, making Sanji come towards him as he tries holding his breath, as he comes towards Kuroobi and tries kicking him but misses him. "What now? Your kick is only half as powerful underwater. That's the limit of humans. But my Fishman Karate loses none of its power down here! On the contrary, it's twice as strong! **Fishman Karate: Water Speed! Lower Abdominal Kick!"** Kuroobi shouts and kicks Sanji in the stomach winding him, he lets out the last remain air in his lungs, and Kuroobi pulls at the end of hair still around Sanji's waist and pulls the cook towards him as he spins drawing the cook closer. " **Fishman Karate: Buring Iris Heel Stamp!"** Kuroobi kicks Sanji on the back of the head and swims down to meet Sanji and kicks him in the chin. " **Reverse counter kick! Ultimate Palm Strike!"** He looks Sanji in the eye before striking him in the face with his palm, the force rockets Sanji towards a wall of earth and smashes hard into the rock face. "Finished." Gen looks over at Kuroobi in fear and a rumble from the impact sounds again as Sanji tries desperately to reach the surface for much-needed air, but Kuroobi beats him towards the surface and looms over the cook. "Where do you think you're going? What amazing perseverance. Never thought a human would have any." Kuroobi laughs manically.

….

Upon land, Zoro watches the water, and Yosaku feels something grab his wrist and looks down to see Dakota's hand grabbing his wrist loosely. "Dakota…" Yosaku mutters gaining Johnny's attention, and they look down at him and turn their heads at the gasp for air as Sanji breaks the water surface.

"You… oi-" Zoro grumbles as Sanji climbs up next to the swordsman both breathing heavily.

"Don't worry, he's okay," Sanji reports with ragged breathing.

"Really?"

"Half of him."

"Half?"

"Tell you later. But first… get your ass outta the water, you fish freak! I still need to kick your small-time ass!" Sanji shouts and Kuroobi climbs out after him looking just as bad as the cook.

"You still don't understand, do you? It doesn't matter whether it's underwater or on land. It's still the same. You've really angered me. I'll show you the essence of Fishman Karate. The move that blew you out of the park… was a 100 Direct Punch! But my special move is the 1000 DIrect Punch! The chances of your surviving are… ZERO!" Kuroobi shouts but doesn't get the chance even to move as Sanji goes in for a kick to Kuroobi's neck.

" **Neck!** You said my chivalry was naive? **Shoulder!"** Sanji snaps and kicks again in the shoulder. "That I can't protect anyone, huh? **Ribs! Saddle! Chest! Legs!"** Sanji delivers a series of kicks at Kuroobi and the villagers all watch in amazement as they see the touch Fishman getting kicked around and falls to the ground and struggles to get up.

"Why you… bastard! You bastard!" Kuroobi growls. " **Direct Air Punch! 1000 Di-"** He stops seeing or not seeing Sanji, as he's sailing towards him.

" **Mutton Shot!"** Sanji shouts as he kicks Kuroobi in the face hard sending the Fishman through the wall of the building and right out the back, the crowd all look at the cook with awe as he stands and looks over his shoulder. "Guess you… don't need dessert." Sanji quibs as he smirks, Sanji looks at his work as Arlong mutters his dear friend's names under his breath as he looks over at them.

….

In the countryside, Usopp lies in a pool of fake blood as Chew stands over him unaware he's still alive. "Chu! What a handful he was… so damn fast. But it only took one blast from my 'water cannon' to finish him off. Well, time to head back. Things should be pretty much done back there by now." Chew says and turns walking back in the direction of Arlong Park, Usopp twitches his fingers waiting for Chew to be a safe distance away from him. Usopp gets up once he waits a little longer but lies back down feeling Chew looking but soon gets back up again and puts dirt on himself as a disguise of his cowardness.

"I could say. 'Oh! So sorry! I got lost!' or something… hmm, what should I say? Maybe I should go like, 'Oh, that jerk? He got away!' nah, that'll never fly, will it? 'Hey, don't cry, Nami!' 'We did our best!' or… 'well, we each fought our hardest!' or… 'I was in a deadly situation!' or… 'my wounds aren't that serious...'" Usopp talks to himself as he rubs in the dirt on his arms and thinks of all the people he'll be letting down, that are fighting for his friend and it weighs down on him hard. "Or… 'm-my b-battle… was…' 'that was… why…'" He fights back the tears, and he stands up turning around to face Chew. "WAIT RIGHT THERE, YOU FISH FREAK!" Usopp screams, and this makes Chew stop in his tracks and looks over his shoulder.

"Oh? You're not dead yet? Chu!" Chew questions in irritation.

"Of course not. I won't die from some stupid water cannon!" Usopp shouts at the Fishman pointing at him as he turns around, Usopp rummages around his manpurse for his slingshot as Chew walks towards him. Usopp readies to shoot at Chew as he walks towards him that speeds up to a run and jumps into a leap towards the long-nose pirate. "THERE'S NO WAY I CAN LAUGH WITH THEM!" Usopp screams as he launches a smoke bomb at Chew's face but it doesn't faze him, he rides through it and punches him in the face hard, Usopp falls to the ground as Chew flips over behind him.

"Fool! You were better off pretending you were dead. You must be a little slow in the head. Chu." Chew quibs at him as he walks towards the floored pirate.

"Is it… over already?" Usopp asks him weak from the hit, but Chew doesn't stop there as he kicks Usopp in the side.

"Yeah, it is. It's over. Just like you are!" Chew shouts as he kicks him.

"It's over, huh?" Usopp asks again and rummages around again for something. " **Usopp Hammer!"** He shouts and grabs hold of the hammer and swings, hitting Chew in the face and gets on his knee with a rubber band. " **Usopp Rubberband!"** Usopp sees Chew flinching at the oncoming hit and uses it to run and hide from the threatening Fishman.

"Ah! Shit! How did I fall for something like that?! Why that lil' bastard…!" Chew growls looking around for the long-nose and begins turning red in the face before a bottle spins towards him. The Fishman catches the bottle unaware of Usopp's plan. "Wine?"

" **Ultimate Lead Star!"** Usopp shouts as he shoots at the bottle, smashing it open, the wine flies all over Chew, soaking him, making him stagger back in surprise.

"Is this the only way you know how to fight, you inferior creature?! Chu! No matter where you may hide! I'll blow you away with my water cannon!" Chew growls and leans down with his mouth to the water and sucks it up quick as Usopp hides in the trees.

"Being stupid or cowardly has nothing to do with it! This fight… there's no way the manly Usopp can run away from it! If I lose, I die, I'm a pirate now!" Usopp encourages himself as he hides among the trees as Chew finally sucks up all the water and grows larger.

" **Water Cannon!"** Chew shouts and releases a massive ball of water at the trees in front of him, Usopp cowers in fear as water rains down around him, and he looks over at the damage he's inflicted.

"No way! So powerful" Usopp marvels with bug eyes of shock and awe.

"Why should I have to fight with this idiot? He's so obvious! I'll blow you to pieces! **100-Shot Water Gun!"** Chew growls as he releases single and deadly shots of water and Usopp hides behind a tree away from the bullet like water drops.

"Oh no! H-how, how did he find me?! Crap! Crap! Look… Usopp Pirate Crew! Kaya! I went to sea to become a real pirate! I'm going to fight so I can become a brave warrior of the sea! Those lazy days and the silly pirate games… ARE ALL OVER!" Usopp screams as Chew continues to shoot but stops and kicks the tree trunk in half, Usopp goes flying as Chew holds the tree.

"What's all over?" Chew asks him.

"This battle! Wine is flammable! **Ultimate FIery Flaming Star!"** Usopp shouts and fires a flame ball that hits the wine-soaked Fishman who catches on fire and screams in pain. As he calls out for water, Usopp plucks up the courage and gets out his hammer again as he runs after the flaming Fishman and knocks him around. " **Usopp Hammer!"** Usopp hits him hard into one of the pools of water and goes skidding onto the ground, he gets up to his feet and hears Chew.

"Bastard…!" Chew growls and Usopp runs over and begins hitting Chew repeatedly.

" **Usopp Hammer!"** Usopp repeatedly screams as he hits Chew with his hammer and runs out of energy as he falls back in the water. "You see that, loser! I CAN DO IT! You see that you jerk! Don't look down on me, dammit!" Usopp cries out to the sky unaware of what is happening at Arlong Park with his crewmates

….

At Arlong Park the others look at Arlong as he stands in front of Sanji whos hunched over with Zoro behind him lying on the ground both of them bloody. They hear a cough from behind. "Stupid fish dicks!" They hear Dakota's voice and the screams of Johnny and Yosaku, they all turn their heads to see Dakota standing between the weeping Bounty Hunters, she stands bloody with a fire in her eyes. "No one stabs me and gets away with it because I come back, always, I'm the Red Devil, I kill scum like you all the time. My payment will be knowing that I've made Nami smile." She speaks as she pulls off her jacket to then tugging off her top leaving her in a black bikini top, but no wound or scare from the stabbing just dried up blood. "You're not the first Fishmen I've met so bring it. You're not the superior beings, you're not god either so let's end this." She snarls and looks at Arlong as he smirks over the boys, she walks over in front of the Fishman looking up at him with a grim look.

"You should just give up. Your lives aren't all that important anyway." Arlong snaps as he looks down at the redhead.

"ARLONG!" Nami shouts out, and everyone looks over at her.

"Big Sis Nami! Nami-san! Nami-chan!" They all greet her with shock.

"Yo, Nami. I was just giving some loser pirates a demonstration of our power. What brings you here?" Arlong laughs not taking anything seriously.

"I'm here to kill you," Nami tells him with a blank look in her eyes as she stares at him under Luffy's treasured hat.

"Well, that makes things interesting," Dakota mutters and smiles looking over at her friend and cast a look at the boys.

 **TO BE CONTINUED...**


	11. Strawhat Pirates Vs Arlong Pirates Pt 2

**SHOWDOWN: THE STRAWHAT PIRATES VS. THE ARLONG PIRATES PART TWO**

 **Dakota's POV:**

I look back over my shoulder at Nami as she stands with the villagers in shock but she seems serious at what she'd said, and I smile before turning to look back at Arlong. "Here to… kill me?" He repeats slowly then barks with laughter but stops looking at Nami. "You still haven't given up. How many times have you tried to kill me, these past eight years? Murder, poison, assault. Has it ever worked? You should know better than anyone else, that we can't be killed by you humans so easily. Listen, you can never kill me. And you can never run away from me. Nami. You'll remain as my cartographer. Besides, you know I've been good to you. I really hope that you'll continue the map-making if possible." Arlong asks her, and I narrow my eyes at him knowing he's messing with Nami's head, he looks at her and points over at her. "So, how does this sound? Because of what's happened, normally I'd kill all of these people, except you. But, if you make a decision now to return to the Arlong Pirates, and continue to draw maps for me… I'll spare the people of Cocoyashi." He points down at them, and I can feel them all tense up along with Nami. "But these guys won't be spared. They were too foolish." Arlong kicks Sanji to the side as he lies at our feet, I glare at the Fishman for his act. "So, it's your choice. If you chose me, the people of your village will be safe. Or you could choose to fight against me with these fools. But, these guys you hope to count on are in such bad shape right now… I don't think there's any way to avoid this ending in tragedy. Are you _my_ Nakama, or… are you theirs?" Arlong asks Nami, and I clench my fists feeling my nails dig into my palm.

"You bastard! No matter what you say, you just want to keep her!" The villagers shout in protest and rage at the large Fishman.

"Everyone, I'm sorry! Will you die with me?" Nami asks them, and I smile to myself at her act of bravery, and the villagers all shout their agreement.

"So, you wish to be slaughtered," Arlong mutters, and suddenly a fountain of water springs up past the wall, and I know already that it's the goofball, this gains all our attention. "What's that?"

"There he is… all that's left is for me to take care of the block on his feet." Sanji mumbles and I look behind me as I see the two of them moving about to stand.

"What? I get it now." Zoro mutters.

"Big bro Luffy!" Yosaku and Johnny cheer by Nami, and they look over with the rest of us at the wall Luffy is hiding. I smirk and hear the clank of a sword hitting the concrete and look at Zoro along with Sanji.

"Thirty seconds. I can't hold on any longer than that." Zoro warns Sanji and puts his sword handle in his mouth, and I see he's got my swords, and I look over at the Bounty Hunters with a little glare.

"That's more than enough!" Sanji shouts before diving into the water, and I look down helping Zoro to his feet.

"I guess I can let you borrow my swords for a little while." I jest, and he looks at me but seems to be looking at my exposed chest and a slight blush forms on his cheeks. I love to make him blush. I look over at Arlong as he takes a step forward towards the water but Zoro slices his upper cheek as a warning before I can tag in, someone tugs on my hair, and the same Fishmen surround me. I grin as I look at their smirking faces and I headbutt the one in front of me, he goes down, and I kick the guys to my side in the head which knocks him down, I see his pal on my left and roundhouse kick him in the side of the head and knock him down. The next one comes at me, and I kick him up the jaw and he goes back, they don't stay down looking angrier than before.

"You bitch!" They all shout as they get up, I smirk at them as they glare at me. "You inferior human!" One of them snaps, and I shrug my shoulders.

"I'm anything but inferior, I'm a successful assassin and bodyguard of this little pirate crew so back off fish dicks," I warn them, but they don't listen as they step towards their doom and I give out a sigh. "Well, I warned you. **Akuma Akuma no Aldinach's Powers."** I mutter and feel the mask form around my jaw, and I smirk, but they won't see it. "I warned you boys, but you just won't listen. **Venom Staff!"** I feel the golden staff form in my right hand and spin it around and point it at the Fishmen. "Feel like dying?" I joke and spin it around some more.

"We're immune to most toxins." Arlong snaps from his place by Zoro but he doesn't know what I do, and I slice one of the Fishman's arm, and the venom works fast, he starts shaking as he veins pop out of his skin glowing a slight green as he starts choking before flopping down on the ground dead.

"Not this one." I snip and looks at the remaining three Fishmen. "So who's next, I'll go easy on you if you like?" I shift back to myself for a second before my eyes turn black. " **Akama Akama no Agramon: Ultimate Fears!"** I snap and look at the Fishman in front of me and smirk. I shift the surrounding area between the Fishman and me, I feel my body become taller, and the space gets darker. "So much fear for the dark, no you're afraid to get sold. Well, let's begin the bidding at 1,000,000!" I see sweat begin to trickle down the side of his face as the imaginary bidders keep going up and it stops. "Sold for 45,000,000!" I shout, and the Fishman faints on the spot and the illusion stops, and I shift my hand into a knife to kill the Fishman. "So being sold is your ultimate fear but not enough to kill you, well I'll finish with that. So who's next?" I grin at the remaining two, and they come at me, the first one comes at me with his arm out but I jump in the air using his arm to propel myself over onto his shoulder, and I sit on his shoulder and wrap my arms around his neck and squeeze. He put up a fight, but I keep going, he starts choking as I squeeze harder making it difficult for him to breathe and he fights to get me loose, but his movements become sloppy and soon stops and fall on the ground along with his other buddies, leaving one left. "So you gonna give up." I poke at him, and he doesn't back down, I run towards him, and roundhouse kick him in the stomach, he grabs hold of my leg before I can pull away, he swings me around but I pull myself up a little and grab hold of his fin on the top of his head. I pull myself up over his head and elbow him for good measure and rolls off his back; he quickly turns around as I get back on my feet and gives me a serious of punches to the face, I feel the hits and blood trickling down the side of my chin.

He goes for another punch, but I stop it with my own, go around in a circle as we try punching one another, he tries getting in a kick, but I block it with my own again. I throw a punch, and he tries blocking my punches, and I flip onto my hands before propelling myself onto his shoulders and flip him over onto his front, and he was out. I stand up from the ground and spit out some blood still in my mouth from when I bit the inside of my cheek earlier in the fight and wipe the rest of the blood off my chin and smirk down at the last Fishman down. Apart from Arlong but that's Luffy's prey and speaking of the dummy here he comes. He floats in the sky screaming. "I'm BAAACK!"

"Rubber boy!" The Doctor exclaims as I walk over to them slowly as they all smile and celebrate the goofballs return.

"Big Bro Luffy! Luffy!" They all shout and cheer, and I stand by the wall between Usopp and the villagers as I look over at Arlong as he holds Zoro by the next and his chest wound is exposed, I go to get him, but Luffy jumps in.

"Zoro!" Luffy shouts as he stretches his arms and grabs hold of Zoro and flings him up and goes down. "SWITCH!" I look up at Zoro as he shouts flying away and I look over at the dobe.

"YOU MORON!" We all shout angrily.

" **Akuma Akuma no Teleport,"** I whisper and blink myself out towards Zoro, I blink behind Zoro and jump onto his back, surprising him. "Hello handsome," I smirk before blinking us down behind the wall of Arlong Park, and by the water steps, he seems in shock as he lies on the brick steps.

"I'll… kill him." He gasps as I watch him try to control his breathing.

"Well it sounds like he's killing Arlong right now, so maybe try killing him later." I joke as I pick Zoro up, so he's sitting down on the steps, and I hear the fight behind us before the screams of Johnny and Yosaku. "Seems heated," I mutter and jump on top of the wall to watch Luffy kick Arlong's ass and get a giggle out of it, what I see doesn't surprise me as I see Arlong biting into a stone column with Luffy pinned by his hand. The stone cracks under the pressure of his jaw and it crumbles down behind them as Arlong stands there and Luffy scurries away.

"Scary!" Luffy exclaims as he pegs it and stops looking back at Arlong as he turns to face Luffy.

"Behold. This is the true power of Fishmen. The Heavens have made a distinction between us. The Heavens only gave you humans enough strength to exist below us." Arlong blabs on as he walks towards Luffy and stops. "You are inferior animals! From the very moment we were born, everything was different." He gives out a quick chuckle. "I'll show you just how different we really are." Luffy stands up and smiles at the Fishman.

"Sure, show me. But there's no way in hell I'll lose to you fish-people. Because I'm… the man who'll become the Pirate King!" Luffy warns him, and it's tense all around us with the silence, I look down at Zoro who seems calm now and listening to the fight.

"Pirate King? Don't make me laugh. You think a mere human like you can become someone like that? Can you bite through that column with your powers?" Arlong asks like it's relevant as he picks up a chunk of stone and continues to catch and throw on the spot as he talks.

"So what?! Don't try showing off… with things that don't matter!" Luffy snaps as he punches the stone next to him, it crumbles, and he looks over at Arlong with his fist raised. "I can break that column without having to bite it."

"Oh! Well said, Big Bro Luffy! You got it! In the end, the results the same!" Yosaku cheers on the sidelines.

"You're so stupid! The whole human race is pathetic! You can't even save yourself in the ocean. You can't do anything!" Arlong shouts, and lunges towards Luffy for another bite, Luffy dodges out of the way and stretches his arm to some swords by a fallen Fishman and picks them up.

"And when I can't do anything, I have others to help me!" Luffy shouts getting in Arlong's face with the swords in hand and starts swinging them around.

"Dumbass he's going to cut himself again." I sigh as I watch him continue to swing the swords. "Take that, and that, and that!"

"What the hell are you doing now?" Arlong questions as he dodges the blades. "You're just waving them around." As Luffy swings them around, they move back, and Arlong moves his head to the side cutting off Luffy's swing, the movement plucks the sword from Luffy's hand and goes flying. "I'm not interested in fooling around with you." Luffy swings the remaining sword as he does, Arlong lunges slightly, and it goes to his mouth, the top of the blade cuts off and goes spinning away before Arlong bites down on the rest of the blade and cracks it with a big smirk of his face. "This is boring."

"Then eat this!" Luffy shouts as he swings at Arlong, hitting him in the lower jaw hard enough to make his move, even his teeth break under pressure.

"Arlong's teeth broke!" The onlookers exclaim in shock as Arlong lies on the ground shaking probably in rage.

"Of course I don't know a damn thing about swords, you dumbass!" Luffy shouts seeming proud almost of that fact; I hear Zoro grunting behind me and look down as he ties his bandana around his upper arm with a struggle.

"You should be careful; you can make yourself worse if you keep moving," I warn him, and he looks up at me as I look down at him from the top of the wall.

"I'm fine." He grunts and I turn back to the fight.

"I don't know how to navigate either. I can't cook. I can't even lie. I know that I need others to HELP me if I want to keep on living!" Luffy shouts and Arlong lets out a laugh.

"You sure are useless… how pitiful. And such a pathetic guy is their Captain? They must really resent you. Why should they risk their lives to save someone like you? Someone they can't be proud of, why should you be their Captain? What can you do?" Arlong asks him as he stands up with his webbed hand covering his mouth.

"I can beat the crap out of ya!" Luffy declares, and I narrow my eyes at him sending waves of encouragement sort of.

"If you get yourself killed, I'll kill you," Zoro vows, and I have to agree as for the audience, they cheer on Luffy.

"SHUT UP! You've got to be joking, weakling!" Arlong shouts and spits it old teeth out, and a new set grows in straight away.

"Eh? His teeth grow back!" Luffy exclaims in surprise.

"Because I'm a shark!" Arlong states as they stand facing each other. "My teeth will grow back over and over… with stronger ones every time!" He pulls out his new set with his bare hands. "However many times…" And another set grows in their place, and he yanks that one out too. "As many times as I need. This is a trait that the Heavens have given to me."

"COOL!" Luffy exclaims in amazement after staring at the show.

"Are you beginning to understand just how superior I am?" Arlong asks and uses his extra teeth as castanets " **Twist Gum"** He lunges with them and goes for Luffy, but he dodges out of the way and keeps dodging as Arlong keeps trying to take a bite out of him.

"Whoa, stop that!" Luffy shouts and grabs hold of Arlong's right arm trying to stop him but it doesn't work as Arlong goes down, hitting down on Luffy continuously while the others gasp in horror I look closer to see Luffy switches himself for a Fishman lying down on the ground to shield himself.

"Arlong-san… it hurts…" He cries out, and Arlong pulls away to reveal his bleeding face and looks on in horror at his work.

"M-my Kinsman!" Arlong stutters and Luffy lets him lie back on the ground sighing to himself. "Why you, rubber bastard… how dare you use one of my kinsmen as a shield!" Arlong becomes angry as Luffy stands there.

"What're you talking about? You're the one who attacked him." Luffy deflects honestly.

"Stand still, rubber bastard!" Arlong snaps his teeth at Luffy which makes him smirk.

"Heh, I just thought of a good idea." Luffy states and I hunch over in defeat and put my hands on my head as I watch Arlong strike at Luffy again, and he dodges in time.

" **Twist Gum!"** Arlong shouts as he strikes at Luffy but he keeps missing when Luffy smashes his food down on the concrete cracking it before kicking Arlong on the side of the head, he goes to the ground, and his teeth fly out as he lands skidding away.

"They came out!" Luffy cheers to himself and Arlong rises back up.

"Idiot, I told you that it doesn't matter how many times you break my teeth. Don't you get it yet?!" Arlong shouts at Luffy as his teeth grow back, but Luffy doesn't listen.

"Look! Now I have 'em too!" Luffy announces with Arlong's teeth in his mouth snapping away as he talks.

"I figured he'd do something stupid like that." Zoro grumbles and I look down at him agreeing with his statement; it was just like Luffy to do that.

"How long do you intend to keep fooling around?" Arlong snaps and lunges at Luffy, cutting him with his teeth castanets on the shoulder.

"Ah! I was bit by a shark!" Luffy screams in pain; I feel myself having to fight not to move and help my baby brother as he wails around in pain for a few seconds and looks over at Johnny and Yosaku as they shout at him, but Arlong interrupts as he goes in for another strike. Arlong continues his assault, and Luffy keeps dodging again, but he can't counterattack just yet, and he moves out of the way of one of Arlong's strikes and looks at the Fishman as he lies on the ground. I grip onto the wall feeling it crumble under the pressure as I grip tighter as Arlong uses his teeth castanets to bite into Luffy's stomach, Luffy sits up as he shouts in pain and bites into Arlong's shoulder making him let go, and throw Luffy away to hold onto their injured areas. "How's that? Getting bit by your own teeth?" He asks and tries to laugh like Arlong.

"Even if they are mine… you jaw's far too weak! Listen, sharks tear flesh and limbs from the body of its prey. That's what a shark's true power is!" Arlong boasts and strikes again, but with his mouth, Luffy tries to block him, but Arlong bites down on Luffy's elbow.

"No! Big Bro's bones will be broken!" Yosaku shouts out in horror, and I break a piece of the wall off.

"Luffy!" Nami shrieks in horror as we all watch on as Luffy shouts out in pain while Arlong bites further into Luffy's elbow, as he keeps digging further in Luffy grabs hold of the back of Arlong's head and lifts his leg into the air. He uses the momentum as his leg comes down to pull Arlong down onto the hard concrete ground. The force of the hit makes Arlong let go of Luffy's elbow and rolls away to kneel on the ground near Arlong. Everyone chats among themselves when Arlong gets up rubbing the back of his head and Luffy pries Arlong's teeth from his flesh and Arlong goes quietly into the water in front of him.

"Huh? Where is he?" Luffy questions as he stands up to look around.

"Luffy! In the water!" Nami yells over to him, as a warning.

"The water? Oh! A shark!" Luffy gapes as he sees Arlong's dorsal fin poking up in the water coming towards him and then away.

"That's ARLONG dummy!" Usopp shouts out to him from his hiding spot, I look over as Arlong swims along the surface but he dives down out of sight meaning he's readying for an attack.

"Huh, he dove down. Is he running away?" Luffy asks as he tries looking into the water but it doesn't matter as Arlong darts out of the water with quick speed towards Luffy and torpedoes into the top of the building and Luffy goes flying and lands on his face.

"Oh? You dodged that well. But dodging is just dodging; the next one will send you to hell!" Arlong says as he stands in the hole he made and goes for another hit. " **Shark on Darts!"** He lunges down on Luffy, nose first but again Luffy dodges the hit as Arlong's pointed nose sticks out and cracks and crumbles the concrete around him. " **Shark on Darts!"** He shouts from the dust cloud and lunges again for Luffy, he dodges out of the way but Arlong turns around and goes for him again too quickly, and Luffy goes flying up with a scream, giving Arlong enough time to go back into the water as Luffy falls back down.

"Hey, Luffy! Hide!" Usopp shouts over to him as Luffy gets back up. "He went back into the water!"

"Big Bro, hurry and hide! He's gonna attack again!" Yosaku and Johnny shout in too.

"RUN!" Usopp screams out of fear, but I know Luffy won't listen to them.

"No." Luffy refuses as he grits his teeth and I smile at his bravery to stand there.

"What are you saying, you moron?! You wanna just stand there and be an easy target? Go and hide!" Sanji shouts back at Luffy, but it won't change his mind.

"No! I'm gonna break that nose of his! Bring it on! Sharky" Luffy shouts as he stands ready for Arlong's next attack.

"What part of 'hiding' do you not understand, Luffy? You just got lucky before and barely dodged it! But if he hits you this time, you're doomed!" Usopp shouts in fear for Luffy, but Luffy tunes him out as he always does with these sort of things.

"Come on Luffy, kick his ass!" I whisper-shout, but I know Zoro hears me.

" **Gomu Gomu no Shield!"** Luffy shouts as he stretches his fingers out in front of him.

"What's that stance?" Yosaku asks his partner.

"Does he really think that'll stop him?" Johnny adds in his question, when Arlong darts out of the water towards Luffy and seems to hit him.

"Stabbed!" The Bounty Hunting duo cries out in shock and horror, but it's short lived as Luffy seems to have caught Arlong with his stretched fingers and jumps using the roof to propel him up.

"What? Is he dead?!" Usopp shouts out in worry as we all watch.

"No, he got away in time!" Sanji shouts back as Luffy jumps away and lands on the top wall of the building.

"I stopped your li'l trick, so I guess you can't use it anymore!" Luffy shouts down, but Arlong isn't listening.

" **Shark on Darts!"** Arlong shouts as he jumps up and through the roof towards Luffy, who jumps away and falls towards the water as Arlong hands on the top roof, looking down.

"You dork, haven't you used enough of that?" Luffy questions as he falls.

"You're finished!" Arlong shouts and dives down towards Luffy nose first.

"Take this!" Luffy shouts and moves his hands behind his head. " **Gomu Gomu no Net!"** He loops his fingers together and captures Arlong. "Fishing! Let's fish!" Arlong pings back in front of Luffy as he retracts his arms and fingers and spins in the air moving his feet together as he continues to spin building up momentum. "And now… **Spear!"** He strikes down on Arlong to the ground with force and retracts his legs back as clouds of debris float around the fallen Fishman.

"He did it! Good job!" The crowd cheer.

"Oh? Is he dead?" Luffy wonders as he falls towards Arlong when he bounces up with wild eyes and swipes at Luffy.

"You inferior human!" Arlong snaps as he grabs hold of Luffy and swings him around above his head. "How did you do this to me, a Fishman?!" He throws Luffy at the wall which breaks under pressure, the clouds dispires and Luffy is covered in debris and soon sits upright with pieces of stone falls away.

"Man, that shook me up. I don't think he's hurt, but he sure is anger." Luffy states as Arlong lunges at him hand out ready to grab, but Luffy dodges out of the way as Arlong's hand goes through the stone wall and he moves it up seeming to grab something from inside. He pulls out a weapon I've had on my wishlist for years but could never get a shark-saw sword or saw-shaped sword. "What's that?" Luffy asks as he looks at the giant sword.

"Kiribachi!" Nami gasps out in horror at the sword.

"With huge teeth!" Johnny exclaims in horror and Arlong takes a jumping swing towards Luffy at the roof, who jumps up onto the next roof away as Arlong takes up pieces of tile. Arlong goes for another swing jumping up towards Luffy who dodges out of the way; more clouds float around as Arlong and Luffy dodge and swing at each other getting towards the top.

"Big Bro Luffy! Run! Watch out!" The Bounty Hunters shout out in a panic, along with the rest of the crowd.

"He won't stop. there's no way out of this!" The Doctor says, and Arlong jumps in front of Luffy and pushes him through a window, smashing throughout of sight.

"They went inside," Sanji states the obvious.

"That room is…" Nami mumbles but enough for my sensitive ears to pick up as everyone hangs on their last breath for the outcome. Once the two are inside it's quite all I can pick up is mumbles as Arlong talks and a few choice words, but that's it when I hear something metallic in nature break from inside.

"What's going on in there?" Someone in the crowd asks in worry.

"Dammit! What's happening to you, Big Bro Luffy!?" Yosaku panics as we all wait with silent breaths for anything.

"We have no way of knowing what's going on…" Johnny adds on to his partner's worry.

"Luffy…" Nami mumbles as we all watch closes on the top floor of Arlong Park, I zone in a little and hear Arlong laugh when a smash comes from the side, and something breaks through the stone wall, a desk flies out startling everyone.

"What's that!?" Yosaku shouts out in fear but sees what it is.

"A desk?" Sanji points out along with Usopp.

"It's a desk!"

"Oh, it's just a desk…" Johnny says, and the two let out the breath they were holding.

"That scared me; I was afraid that it was gonna be Big Bro Luffy or something…" Yosaku sighs in relief.

"Hey, partner! Don't you have faith in Big Bro Luffy's strength?!" Johnny asks Yosaku.

"But Johnny you were surprised too!" Yosaku defends himself.

"Dumbass! I was… sure that it was… Arlong, of course…" Johnny tries defending himself stuttering all over the place.

"See? You're so full of it!" Yosaku snaps at his partner.

"What did you say? Like I said…" Johnny snaps back but gets cut off as more of the upper room is thrown out along with some of the wall and crashes down breaking into pieces with more coming out right after, papers scatter in the air as they come out next, one moves past. It's a map. We all wait for the next hit, and it's Luffy's leg as he stretches it up high breaking through the top of the building. It crashes down, and the force hits something all the way down to the bottom of the building, clouds of dust fly out of every opening as we all watch on in awe at sight and the flag post comes tumbling down breaking on impact. The surrounding area begins to shake as the building crumbles from all the hits it's taken in the last hour, or so, everyone starts panicking as they watch.

"Look! That last attack is causing Arlong Park to…"

"No way! It's collapsing!"

"Everyone, run!" The crowd all shout and run for cover as it breaks and crumbles apart.

"Big Sis Nami, hurry!" Johnny shouts as he grabs hold of Nami to pull her to safety.

"But Luffy's still in there!" Nami protests, trying to fight him.

"BIG SIS!"

"But Luffy… Luffy is!" She tries protesting, but it's too late as the building finally crashes down. "LUFFY!" Nami screams out, but I know he'll be okay. I hope he'll be okay. The fall creates a wind that knocks me down next to a snoozing Zoro, and I get up to look around the wall as the dust clouds all settle when a piece of the wall cracks off and falls on Zoro's head waking him up.

"Ouch! What the hell?! Damned noisy… Luffy?" He snaps and looks over at me as I turn back to see what's happened to the goofball. Everything is quiet as everyone hangs on mumbling among themselves waiting to see what the outcome is, the clouds part letting the sun shines down on the destroyed Arlong Park and out springs the winner.

"LUFFY!"

"BIG BRO!" They cheer, and I sigh in relief as I watch him catch his breath then take a quick inhale.

"NAMI! YOU ARE MY NAKAMA!" Luffy screams, and I look over at Nami to see tears running down her face as she agrees and I can't help the smile that takes over.

"WE WON!" Johnny and Yosaku cheer and the villagers join in.

"Arlong Park has fallen!" I pull Zoro by his shirt up into my arms holding him bridal style which he causes him to protest and try getting out of my arms but I teleport us over to the crowd and drop him as I watch the villagers throw Luffy up into the air in celebration and walk over to Usopp and Sanji.

"Man, you had me worried there for a bit. Be quicker next time, you bastard." Sanji jests but I know the feeling.

"Tell me about it; I thought I'd have to step in," I add on with a small laugh as I stand next to him as we watch Luffy get thrown around, I look over to see Nami walk over and stand watching as well when Luffy drops to the ground, but he just laughs it off.

"Awesome!" He chuckles as he sits upright and Nami gives him his hat back, he looks up at her and jumps to his feet before they high five and we can't help but laugh, but it doesn't last long.

"That's enough, scumbags!" A voice shouts cutting off the celebrations; I look over to see a horde of Marines.

"Not him!" A villager snaps in disgust.

"Well, this must be my lucky day! Nice work. I enjoyed the show, but I never would have thought… that these Fishmen would be defeated by the likes of you silly pirates. But thanks to you, Arlong's bounty, as well as all of Arlong Park's riches, will be mine. Everyone, put down your weapons. I, Captain Nezumi, of the Marine's 16th Battalion, will be taking over from here~!" He lets out a strangled scream as Zoro grabs hold of the back of his neck.

"Zoro!" Usopp cries out.

"Don't spoil the mood when people are trying to celebrate," Zoro warns them, and we get to beat them up quickly and leave them a bruised mess on the ground.

"I-If you dare hit me one more time, I won't let you live…" Captain Nezumi stutters out from the top of the pile.

"You're still talking?" Sanji huffs as we all stand around looking down at them, and Nami walks over and crouches to Nezumi's level.

"This is for shooting Nojiko… and for messing up Bellemere's tangerine grove." Nami calmly tells him, and she stands up and swings her bo staff at his face, the force of the hit makes him skid across the water.

"Captain!" A Marine shouts out to him.

"Thanks, Nami. That was satisfying." Nojiko winks at her tilting her head to the side.

"And there's a thousand more where that came from, jerk!" Gen-san shouts in rage next to Nojiko and Nami walks over to edge of the water as Captain Nezumi climbs out, she grabs his freaky whiskers and pulls at them painfully.

"Now, you guys will take care of cleaning up after the FIshmen, and help reconstruct Gosa Village. But you will not touch even the slightest bit of the Fishmen's riches! They belong to the people of this island. Understand?" She instructs him as she continues to pull at his whiskers painfully.

"Ow, ow! I'll do as you say…" He agrees reluctantly.

"And one more thing… GIVE ME BACK MY MONEY!" She demands.

"I'll give it back, honestly. I don't want it anymore." Nezumi replies with tears falling in fear, and we sent them packing, and they speed off. "This won't be forgotten, you lousy pirates! Straw Hat guy! The names Luffy, right? You're the Captain, aren't you? Don't forget this! You're gonna be big, after messing with me! Too late for amends now! I'll make you sorry! Mark my words!" Nezumi shouts as they retreat and I throw a rock at his head making him fall into the water again.

"Dumbass," I grumble as I watch him splutter up water.

"He said we're gonna be big," Sanji comments as we wall watch.

"How'd he know I was gonna be the Pirate King?" Luffy questions in confusion.

"He wasn't talking about that, you numbskull!" Zoro snaps at Luffy.

"What do we do now?!" Usopp panics in fear of the unknown. "If we become notorious, what'll happen to us? What do we do? Huh? Huh?!"

"Hey, everyone! We can't just celebrate this by ourselves! Carry the news to the whole island!" The Doctor shouts, and they all cheer in agreement and runoff.

"Luffy stop touching Zoro!" I lightly snap and laugh with the others as Zoro glares at the rubber idiot.

"So how'd it go with you Usopp, is he still looking for you?" Sanji asks looking at the long-nose snipper.

"No, I took him down easy, I got him good, I threw some wine at him then I used my special attack to set him on fire. Then it went 'Kaboom'!" Usopp boasts.

"We did well in the end, right?" Luffy laughs.

…..

 **3rd POV:**

At his Marine Base, Captain Nezumi rushes into the communications room to report. "Hello? Helloooo?!" He shouts down the line.

"Yes, Marine Headquarters, here." The voice on the other side announces.

"Marine Headquarters, hello? This is the 16th Battalion, Captain Nezumi! Marine code #00733! I have a report to make!" Nezumi keeps shouting down the line.

"No need to yell. We can hear you." The man on the line tells him calmly.

"Listen up! There's a pirate who wears a straw hat, called Luffy! He and his five accomplices are all against the government!" Nezumi shouts.

…..

On the other side, a Marine sitting at his desk writes down the name, "Luffy…" He mumbles as he writes.

…..

"They were able to crumble Arlong Park and defeat the fearsome Arlong and his Fishmen! We must beware of them! I wish to place a heavy bounty on the head of their Captain, 'Straw Hat Luffy'! I'm sending his picture!" Nezumi announces and then looks behind him as his subordinate gives him two pictures. "And another we found along with him she seems familiar."

…..

On the other side, the pictures come through, and the Marine has a look of shock of the photographs he's seeing.

…..

"What's this? Couldn't you find a better picture?" Nezumi demands, degrading his subordinate.

"No really, this is all we got." He replies with his head down.

"The authenticity of the bounty will be reviewed later. After we send it to the higher-ups." The Marine replies carefully hoping Nezumi would forget about the other picture.

"You got it?! He is a villainous pirate! I want him DEAD OR ALIVE! I WANT A HIGH BOUNTY ON HIS HEAD!" Nezumi shouts but stops pausing for a second. "What about the girl with the red hair?" He asks as he looks at the picture in front of him.

"We caution you with her; it's 'Red Devil Dakota Le Roux' daughter of Red Haired Shanks and known assassin." The Marine replies and this causes Nezumi's eyes to widen, and he lets out a yelp.

So I've been thinking about adding six more stories to my list on top of the other ones, and I want your opinion so please let me know how you feel in the comments, and I will open a poll for the next stories you'd want. I may replace one story, my Soul Eater as I've sort of given up on it at the moment, and I hate even to say it, but at the moment I just have no creative thoughts on the story, so I'm going to put it ON HOLD for a little while then hopefully pick it back up once I thin down all my ideas. So please let me know what you think and don't be shy and go onto my profile and check out the poll. DEADGIRLETERNAL OUT!


	12. Goodbye Party, Hello Ocean

**GOODBYE PARTY HELLO OCEAN**

 **Dakota's POV:**

Everyone is cheering around us as we stand in the crowded streets of the village, I stay by Luffy as I.m avoiding seeing to my injuries, and at the moment Luffy is stuffing his face full of food as a villager stands on top of one of the buildings shouting down to the growing crowd. "Everyone! We're gonna dance and celebrate! Arlong Park has fallen! We've been living for this day for eight years! We've been living to rejoice upon this day! We've been living to rejoice upon this day!" The crowd all cheer in agreement, it's nice to see all these people so happy as they dance, sing, eat and party all around us. "Tomorrow and the next, let's part until we drop!" The crowd cheers again and Luffy continues to stuff his face and picks up a plate with meat on and shoves the whole thing in his rubber mouth but it gets stuck halfway down his throat. Luffy begins to turn green, and I smack him on the head, he swallows hard allowing the plate and meat to move down into his rubber stomach, he looks around the table with a giddy grin on his face.

"Meat! Meat? Isn't there anymore?" Luffy exclaims, and I sigh, looking around, "What's wrong, you still in pain?" He asks me, and I look at him, I can still feel the pain from when that Fishman stabbed me, but the scar is gone, it must have hit something valuable inside.

"It'll heal in a few days," I tell him and look over as Sanji sits over ways smoking.

"Sis, you need to get checked out," Luffy tells me getting serious and I nod not happy about a stranger rummaging around inside my stomach.

"Fine, I'll get it sorted I promise, but I'm not happy about this," I tell him, pointing my finger at him, he shrinks back knowing he's pushing me. "I'll be back later, try not to eat everything." He nods, but I know it's empty and I walk away towards Sanji and hear Zoro shouting in pain, and I open the door.

 **########**

I walk inside the Doctor's office, to see Zoro lying on the bed with the Doctor over him stitching him up, with the Bounty dummies snoozing in the beds next to him. "Fool! You tried to handle an injury this serious by yourself?" The Doctor scolds Zoro as he grunts in pain, and I walk around the bed, to see the Doctor stitching him up.

"It hurts!" Zoro cries out, and I take his hand in mine, he seems to notice as he looks at me and focuses only on me, he grunts every once in a while.

"Are you guys really pirates? Don't you have a Doctor on your ship?" He asks us, and I have to agree with him.

"A Doctor? Not a bad idea." Luffy says as he stands at the open window with more food in his hand.

"Luffy…" Zoro mumbles looking overhead at our Captain.

"But we need a musician first, right Zoro?" Luffy asks his First Mate, and I shake my head at my baby Brother's small-mindedness.

"Because pirates love to sing. Don't you know?" Luffy just says, and I look at the pain Zoro is in and sigh squeezing his hand.

"So, why is that more important?" Zoro demands but Luffy ignores him and turns to look at the stunned Doctor; I crouch down level with Zoro and smile.

"Hey, Doctor, where's Nami? I don't see her anywhere." Luffy asks him, pointing the meat at him.

"Nami, huh? Well, if she's not here, then she must be _there_." The Doctor comments and I look back at Zoro as the Doctor continues to stitch him back up.

"Don't forget to sort out Sis," Luffy tells them, I snap my head up to look at him.

"Luffy!" I hiss at him; he looks at me with the same lost look he always does, sneaky git.

"That guy stabbed you in the stomach; you said it hurt." Luffy retorts and I shake my head in defeat.

"So, it's happened before, he must have got something inside, it'll take a few days to heal," I tell him, and I feel both the Doctor and Zoro's stares.

"You promised." Luffy replies and I glare at him, knowing he's right.

"Fine, do you mind, Doctor?" I ask him as he finishes up on Zoro.

"Go sit down on that bed over there and I'll get you to." He tells me, and I nod, stepping away over to the empty bed behind me and sit down still in just a bikini top.

I grunt in pain as the Doctor stitches up my liver, that got sliced, when I was stabbed. I look over as Zoro who holds my hand like I did for him, I look him in the eye as I feel the Doctor stitch my skin, though in a few minutes it'd heal over completely thanks to my Devil Fruit. "No drinking for a few days, your liver won't be able to take it." The Doctor informs me, and I have to say, I'm still drinking, but I nod my head in fake agreement.

"No drinking got it." I lie and get up from the bed, "I need some change of clothes." I mutter under my breath as Zoro helps me to my feet.

 **########**

The party has been going on for the last three days, and Zoro and Luffy have so far stopped me from drinking but now I can, and I must say I am tipsy, my alcohol tolerance has gone way down. I stagger around trying to find somewhere to sit when I spot Zoro sitting down in one of the alleyways, with his eyes closed seeming relaxed, I swing around and sit next to him. Zoro pops an eye open as I lean against his shoulder looking up at him with a smile then look away as I feel my cheeks heat up, my hair covers part of my face hiding my blush. "Zoro, are you feeling any better?" I ask him, brushing my hair from my face behind my ear.

"Could be better." He replies, and I smile at him knowing how he's feeling and move closer to him, my cardigan pops open showing my chest, I feel his gaze on me, and I smile, I hear Usopp singing in the background one of his songs.

"Wanna dance?" I ask him, grabbing his hand, he looks at me, and I feel the rejection coming.

"Why not." He agrees, and I can't help the grin that spreads across my face as I pull him out onto the street with the rest of the dancing couples. I place my arms around his neck as we swing to our own beat, and I look into his eyes.

 **########**

 **Zoro's POV:**

I can't take my eyes off of Dakota as she swings her hips and I feel her arms around my neck, I place my arms around her waist as we swing to our own beat ,and I smile up at her as she's slightly taller than me but I can't help this turning feeling inside my stomach as I look into her purple eyes, and see the blush on her cheeks from her drinking. I just look at her as she swings from side to side as she looks into my eyes, and it feels like it's just us. "I've never noticed you have brown eyes," Dakota comments and looks into my eyes and I smirk.

"We haven't known each other that long," I remark, and she nods her head.

"True, but I feel like I've known you longer than anyone else besides Luffy on our crew." She says, and I can't help but agree.

"I feel the same," I tell her and she hides her face in my neck.

"For a swordsman, you have some rhythm." She teases me, and I let out a hearty laugh, and we continue dancing.

 **########**

 **3rd POV:**

All across Cocoyashi village in the streets, people sleep along the path, Usopp still atop the tower of tables unconscious spewing nonsense as everyone sleeps. Sanji sleeps with several women leaning against him near a house, the Bounty Hunter duo curling around each other with bottles of booze between them on the ground and finally, Usopp drops to the surface sleeping. Dakota and Zoro sleep in one of the alleyways snuggling into each other as they sleep, a blanket around them as Zoro snores loudly, not bothering the sleeping woman next to him.

 **########**

 **Dakota's POV:**

I stand with Sanji and Luffy finally aboard the Going Merry as I hug my precious weapons as Zoro climbs up the ladder with the last crate of supplies and passes it to Usopp. "This is the last one, right?" Usopp asks as he hauls the crate over the side.

"Yup!" Zoro says as he hops over the side onto the deck.

"Everything's onboard?" Luffy asks Usopp as he packs the last crate away.

"Yeah!" Usopp answers as he places the crate down with the rest.

"Alright, then. They're stocked us with food. Looks like we're ready." Sanji comments as he takes a drag from his cigarette.

"We've only been here a few days, but I feel like we've made so many memories on this island, y' know?" Usopp says, and I can't help but agree as I look over at Zoro.

"Yeah!" Luffy giggles and I laugh cuddling my weapons to my chest.

"Aniki's, thanks. We owe you all so much. We're goin' back to our normal jobs as Bounty Hunters." Yasaku announces I walk over to the side to look down to see them posing.

"We'll bid our farewells for now, but hopefully we'll meet again one day," Johnny says, and they almost look like they're trying to stop themselves from crying.

"Take care, a'right?" Zoro calls down to them.

"You too, Aniki!" The boys shout up.

"Alright, let's get going too!" Usopp yells, turning around with his thumb up.

"H-hey! Wait a minute! What about Nami-sam?" Sanji questions looking around startled.

"I thought she wasn't coming," Zoro comments looking over his shoulder.

"WHY NOT?!" Sanji demands stomping over. "Bastard! You said something rude to her again didn't you?"

"Why would I do that?" Zoro asks as Sanji gets in his face.

"Why else?!" Sanji counters with jealousy.

"I see, that's true, he's got a point." Usopp comments.

"You're trying to get in the way of me and Nami-san's true love!" Sanji blabbers on, as long as he doesn't say my name I'm good.

"She doesn't have a reason to be a pirate anymore," I add-in.

"She'll be happier if she stayed here." Usopp agrees.

"Are you stupid or something?" Zoro asks Sanji, looking away in annoyance.

"What'd you say?!" Sanji demands, getting in his face angrily. "WHAT ABOUT MY HAPPINESS?! IF NAMI-SAN DOESN'T GET ONBOARD, I LOSE 49.36% OF MY REASON TO BE HERE!" Sanji rages, and I can guess what the rest is.

"Hey! Y'know I never found that Namu-Hamu-Melon!" Luffy points his finger at Sanji as if that has anything to do with what Sanji is upset about.

"What did you say?!" This catches our attention as I look over the side to see Nojiko, the Doctor and Gen-san talking when Sanji bumps into me as he rushes over next to me screaming in joy, I follow his gaze to see Nami standing at the edge.

"Nami-san!" Sanji screams, in my ear, along with others.

"START THE SHIP OUT!" Nami shouts over the cries of the villagers, and she starts making a break for it.

"Huh? What's up with her? She started running?" Usopp questions as all look over as she runs.

"She said to set sail," Luffy announces, and we look at him in shock.

"B-but!" Usopp tries to say.

"Wait, does she plan on leaving without hearing our thanks and appreciation?" Gen-san exclaims in shock, setting off the rest of the villagers.

"Lower the sail!" Luffy orders us, Usopp and I loosen the ropes and let the sail roll down, as Zoro lifts the anchor and we begin to float away from the dock startling the others below.

"Hey, you sure you wanna let her leave this way?" Sanji asks Luffy, having calmed down.

"It's alright. It's her decision." Luffy replies as we watch Nami reach the crowd and she zigzags through them not letting them stop her. She reaches the end of the dock quickly running right past Nojiko and the Doctor as they call her name and jumps off of the edge towards the end of the ship. She makes the landing and jumps again onto the dock with the rest of us. For a second she stands there then lifts her top and dozens of wallets and purses fall out, I shake my head at her behaviour with a grin as she kisses a note.

"Take care, everyone!" She shouts, looking behind her now a safe distance from the angry villagers.

"YOU LITTLE BRAT!" The villagers shout their goodbye, and I giggle behind my hand at their antics as I walk down the stairs.

"Oi. she hasn't changed a bit." Usopp comments.

"Who knows when she'll turn on us again," Zoro mutters under his breath as they both glare at her and I look down the stairs at Sanji and Luffy.

"Nami-san, GOOD!" Sanji exclaims, and Luffy lets out a joyous laugh.

"You li'l thieving cat!" "Come back here with my wallet! You bad girl!" "Come back anytime!" "Take care!" "Thank you so much!" The villagers all shout out to us as we sail away.

"BOY!" Gen-san shouts out to Luffy. "Don't you dare forget our promise!" I look at Luffy in wonder and shake my head as he gives him a thumbs up.

"Goodbye. Everyone! I'm off!" Nami shouts her goodbye waving her arms around.

"Come on, Navigator, we need a heading," I comment from the main deck as I lift my weapons into my arms and walk into the room Nami and I share.

 **########**

It's been a few days since we left Cocoyashi village and nothing exciting has happened, we're having a lazy day, Nami is sitting in a deck chair by the rear with Usopp sorting his arsenal out while Zoro naps by the stairs and Sanji and Luffy are in the ship orchard Nami brought with her. I am sitting by Zoro playing with my deck of cards when the newspaper bird swoops down and hands Nami hers. "They raised the price _again_?" She demands, looking at the bird who has no answer. "Don't you think that's a little too high? Why you…" Nami grumbles but she still pays the fee, greedy kid. "Next time the price is raised, I won't buy it, hear?" She warns the bird, and it flies away.

"Geez, it's just a newspaper!" Usopp complains as he fixes some of his pellets.

"But if you get it all the time, it adds up!" Nami complains back raising her hands in the air.

"Well, you don't have to say up to buy your village from Arlong anymore… so why keep worrying about money?" Usopp asks her and turns his head, and she turns to face him.

"Dummy! That's exactly why!" She snaps at him, "I don't have that obligation anymore, so from now on, it's all for myself!" She cheers with a big grin on her face. "I can't go around being some kind of cheapskate pirate, can I?"

"Hey, keep it down!" Usopp snaps at her, stopping with his- whatever he's doing. "I'm in the middle of formulating my 'Tabasco Star!' here!'" He carefully moves the bottom closer. "With this, if I shoot it into the enemy's eyes..." Suddenly Luffy is knocked back into Usopp; he blinks for a second when he screams in pain from his eyes as the tabasco sauce go in.

"What? Come on, just one?" Luffy asks Sanji, sticking his tongue out.

"Never! This is _Nami-san's_ tangerine grove. I won't allow you to lay a finger on it! NAMI-SAN! THE SECURITY GUARD OF LOVE IS ON DUTY!" Sanji exclaims, and I shake my head at their antics.

"Thank you, Sanji-Kun," Nami replies, not even looking at him.

"She uses him like a fool, that dork Sanji." Zoro snides as he awakes from his little nap from Usopp's screams of pain.

"Leave the little Love Cook." I joke and look up at him with a smirk; he looks down at me with a smile.

"What the hell? It's just one little tangerine! Stingy Sanji." Luffy grumbles and sticks his tongue out at our cook as he sits on the bench with Usopp on the floor covering his eyes with a wet cloth.

"I SAID NO!" Sanji snaps at Luffy, and I walk up the steps to see Nami reading the newspaper.

"Oh well, whatever. I'm in a good mood." Luffy laughs it off with a big grin.

"The world's in such chaos right now. There was another coup-d'etat in Villa." Nami mutters under her breath as she reads the paper flipping through the pages when two pieces of paper slip from between the sheets and floats in front of Luffy's face.

"Hm? A flyer?" He questions as they float about, I walk over as it settles on the floor, I cover my grin as I see what the two pieces of paper are. Bounty Posters new ones, while the others let out screams of excitement and fear.

 **########**

 **3rd POV:**

In the quiet Syrup Village, at the large mansion at the top Meri breaks the silence running through the parlour to the main staircase. "Mistress! Mistress Kaya! Mistress!" Meri calls out as he runs up the stairs to her study, opening the door to find her sitting at her desk writing, she looks up at Meri's arrival.

"What's the matter, Meri?" She asks him, and he holds up the two Bounty Posters with Luffy and Dakota's face.

"Please, look!" Meri cries, and she gets up from her seat, taking off her glasses, looking over the posters and her eyes light up.

"Usopp!" She cries out, causing Meri to be confused as he turns the posters to face him and spots the back of Usopp's head in Luffy's photo. "That back profile is definitely Usopp!"

"It does seem to be, yes…" He agrees, looking at Luffy's poster closer as Kaya turns around towards the window and opens it imagining Usopp to be sitting there waiting for her but she's not totally disappointed.

"Usopp is pursuing his dream… I'm studying to become a Doctor so that I can help people. My dream and Usopp's dream… the day when they'll meet again and become one will arrive someday. I'm sure of it." Kaya dreams aloud.

 **########**

Out in Shells Town, at the Marine Base, inside one of the hallways, Koby stands at the Bounty board in front of Luffy's with Dakota's next. "At last… at last… at last! Luffy is moving on with his dream1" Koby exclaims as he holds onto his mop handle remembering back at the fight against the former Captain Morgan. "But… the next time we meet, we may be enemies!"

 **########**

Down in the cells below the Marine Base, where the former Captain sits in his cell, one of the marines walks down the stairs towards the cell and holds up the rolled-up bounty; he unrolls it to show it's Luffy's Bounty Poster. Morgan's eyes widen at the sight of the boy who sent him to this prison as the Marine snickers at his reaction.

 **########**

Out in the ocean, the Black Cat Pirates sail and the newspaper arrives, one of the crews opens up the paper and pulls out two Bounty Posters. "CAPTAIN!" He shouts as he runs off to show Kuro.

 **########**

Further out to see at the floating sea restaurant, the Baratie, inside the place is packed with happy customers and on the stair column wall is Luffy and Dakota's Bounty Posters hanging there side by side. Inside the kitchen, all of the cooks scatter around cooking their own meals, Zeff finishes up his plate and walks out of the kitchen.

Zeff walks outside to look over the ocean thinking back on his goodbye with Sanji.

 **########**

 **Dakota's POV:**

Luffy picks up the posters from the floor, he lets out a glorious laugh, and I shake my head as the others look at the posters he holds up. "Check it out; we're WANTED!" Luffy laughs, and I take mine from him and see they've changed the photo to one of a few weeks ago, I recognise the top.

"Wanted… Dead or Alive… 30,000,000?" Usopp reads the poster.

"30,000,000 YEAH!" Luffy laughs again, and I chuckle under my breath as I look over.

"Check it out! Even my back is famous now! Damn, I've got it goin', on…" Usopp grins from ear to ear.

"What?" Sanji exclaims and runs in front of the piece of paper looking for the long nose. "They don't have my picture, yet they have Long nose's? Oi- where, where? I don't see you." Usopp points over into the right bottom corner.

"Seee?" Usopp points out his head.

"It's just the back of your head. It doesn't count." Sanji sulks as he sits on the floor.

"Hey now don't be jealous! Someday you could get one too, and be famous like me, even if you aren't the Captain." Usopp tells him, and he lights up.

"Really?" He asks his hopes lifted.

"Well, if you work hard…" I tell him and turn my poster to face the others; they all look at my Bounty in shock.

"35,000,000 how!" Nami exclaims though I'm sure I had already told them my Bounty poster is on the high end.

"Someday you could get one too, and be famous le me." Usopp boasts trying to play cool.

"Even if you aren't the Captain," I add on, and Sanji brightens up.

"Really?" He asks and gets up and does the jig with Usopp as Luffy continues to laugh.

"Well, if you work hard," I reply as they cheer.

"All right crew! We're goin', to the GRAND LINE!" Luffy cheers turning to face the boys with his arms out and they cheer back.

"You guys… once again, you really don't understand the seriousness of this situation! Don't you see this means they're coming for our heads? After this, I don't think we'll be able to lounge about in East Blue anymore." Nami scolds the boys, but they aren't listening to a word she's saying as they cheer.

"They're not listening to you Nami," I tell her and she looks at me with a glare.

"I can't believe both you and Luffy now have bounties on your heads." Nami snaps, and I smirk at her.

"Well, I've had a bounty on my head since I was eleven," I tell her and her face softens, but I just shrug it off.

"Let's Go! Let's Go! To The Grand Line! Let's Go! Go! Go! Go! To The Grand Line!" The boys chant as they dance around the deck.

 **########**

We sail on towards the next island, and I walk out of mine and Nami's room from my snap, and everyone is already out lazing around, I see a wreck sail past us, and I see a familiar face but I can't place it and shrug it off as I walk up the steps. I pass Luffy and Usopp as they watch the shipwreck sail past us and I look up at the sails to see that it's a Marine ship, it sails right past us but suddenly turns around to sail right next to us. "Are those pirates?" Luffy asks, and I shake my head as I pass to the back of the ship to the others. "Using a scrapped military boat?"

"How wasteful, the Marines are," Usopp comments shaking his head. "Just throwing them away as scrap."

"WE ARE NOT SCRAP!" The pinkette shouts as he slams his foot on the side of his broken-down ship. "Are you idiot's blind? How could you forget Fullbody the 'Iron Fist'?"

"Ah! It's that old man Marine! Are you in trouble? Do you need us to save you?" Luffy asks him in his usual cheerful tone that seems to anger the Marine even more.

"Stop kidding around! Destiny has placed you into my hands. MONKEY D. LUFFY AND DAKOTA LE ROUX! You both are under arrest!" Fullbody shouts as he shows are Wanted Posters in one hand and points at them with the other.

"Cool! My picture looks good!" Luffy exclaims beaming with pride.

"And the back of my head looks good, too!" Usopp adds in with even more pride; I shake my head at them.

"DEAD OR ALIVE. Dead or Alive. LOAD CANNON!" Fullbody shouts over to his men by the rusty old cannon aiming it right at us.

"What're they doing? Attacking us?" Luffy questions.

"They're aiming right at us… this is not good~!" Usopp shrieks as his face turns green a little as he backs away from the side.

"Alright! Lemme at 'em, I'll bounce it right back!" Luffy states but Zoro walks over raising his sword.

"Luffy, I'll handle it." He tells our Captain with confidence.

"Right, right. You stand back." Usopp shouts taking Luffy away.

"W-w-why? Why?" Luffy protests as he shoves him to the side.

"Don't get involved. Hey, this way, this way." Usopp quietens him as he moves him away, trying not to get us in even more trouble.

"Sink them." Fullbody orders his men, and they fire the cannon, the cannon fires towards Zoro; he raises his sword in the air before slicing the cannonball in half, the cannonball splits down the middle, veering off the sides.

"Woooo, awesome!" Luffy exclaims watching the parts of the cannonball splashes into the ocean.

"No way, that's crazy!" Fullbody grits his teeth also in amazement along with his men.

"You shouldn't bug people trying to take a nap." Zoro scolds them as he places his sword away/

"How many shots can you stand!? Fire!" Fullbody shouts angrily at his men.

"Er… not good," Luffy comments as the cannon readies for another strike.

"Not good?" Usopp asks Luffy and the cannon fires, but it blows up on itself from the cracks in the barrel.

"See? The cannon had a crack in it." Luffy remarks as if he knows everything.

"Yeah, that definitely not good." Usopp agrees, and the ship knocks into ours.

"Listen, you brats! Do not look down on an Ex-Captain of the Marines! We'll defeat you in close combat." Fullbody screams as he jumps onto our ship, standing in front of Luffy and the cowering Usopp. "Let's go, men! I'll have your head!" He swings at Luffy, punching him in the face but it doesn't do much as Luffy's neck stretches out onto the other side of the ship.

" **GOMU GOMU NO BELL!"** Luffy shouts as his neck retracts hitting Fullbody in the face, knocking him back into the railing, his men fly back from the kicks Sanji sends, Fullbody looks over and screams in fright.

"How dare you interrupt a cook in the middle of his work. You frickin' jerk. We're not serving soup today. You wanna lick the deck?" Sanji intimidates the Marine who let out screams backing away onto their ship and into the water.

"Huh? It's over already?" Luffy wonders as he dusts himself off.

"Hmph. He's all talk." Usopp comments bravely.

"That guy's still a jackass," Sanji grumbles under his breath.

"You guys are so noisy! Can't I get some peace and quiet to read?" Nami complains, bringing her newspaper down.

"NAMI-SAAN! DAKOTA MY LOVE! THE FOOD IS READY!" Sanji shouts, and I walk over to the kitchen.

"Really? I'm starved! Food! Food! Foo-food! Food!" Luffy cheers as he runs into the kitchen, knocking me back and I look at him shaking my head.

 **########**

 **3rd POV:**

On an island somewhere within the Grand Line, two pirates sit on the cliffs looking out by telescope, and he spots something approaching the island. "Huh? What the hell's that?" The man wonders as he tries to get a better look.

"Huh? Lemme see." The man orders leaning against the tree; he stands up and takes the scope from the other man and focuses on the approaching figure to see Hawk-eyes sailing towards them. He lets out a yelp of fright and dropping the telescope to the ground and runs down to meet the dreaded War Lord.

 **########**

Hawk-eyes brings his boat ashore and steps off, walking through the group of pirates as they part in fright at the sight of him and grip their weapons tightly. "Hawk-eyes! What are you doing here?" The man who spotted him demands.

"Shut up. I have no business with you. Where are your superiors?" He demands and one of the pirates breaks off running into the jungle towards the main camp. "Camping on an island such as this… he's much too casual."

 **########**

The pirate runs through the jungle towards the main camp with some lazing around in the sun. The others under a red and white striped umbrella; the man runs towards them. "Boss~!" The man cries out and drops to his knees, a mug settles down in front of him, he snatches it up thirsty as he tries to catch his breath and drinks it down as the others watch behind him."Hawk-eyes!" He shouts, pointing behind him unaware of who stands behind him and soon feels his presence, he turns around with a shriek backing away.

"Yo, Hawk-eyes. Long-time no see." Shanks greets him not even looking up. "I'm not feeling too good right now. You come for a match?"

"I have no interest in challenging… a one-armed man like yourself. However, I came across some interesting pirates. And it reminded me of something you told me a long time ago. A story about a small village, and an amusing little kid…" Hawk-eyes says and walks towards the group before unrolling the Wanted Poster to reveal it's Luffy's, Shanks' eyes widen and the rest of the group seem stunned.

"No way." Lucky Roo gasps still stuffing his face.

"So you've come, Luffy!" Shanks grins as the sun shines down on them. "Well then, Hawk-eyes. I can't let you go just like that." Hawk-eyes sits down next to Shanks and gets offered a mug. "So, Hawk-eyes! C'mon, drink up! Drink, drink!" Shanks encourages him still feeling the effects of the night before. "We're gonna party today!"

"You seem to have already done so," Hawk-eyes comments looking Shanks over.

"Don't mind me. This is a time to celebrate! C'mon, c' mon, c' mon! CHUG! CHUG! CHUG! I like it! PARTY! PARTY!" Shanks cheers and lets out a bellowing laugh.

"But, Boss! You just said you had a hangover from drinkin' too much!" Roo complains, and Shanks brushes him off.

"Dumbass! Don't ruin this good pleasure!" Shanks snaps at him.

"Don't you think it is rather early?" Hawk-eyes asks him, looking down at his drink in hand.

"Don't worry about it! Let's get WASTED!" Shanks cheers and Hawk-eyes rummages around his coat inner pocket and pulls out another Wanted Poster and unrolls it, showing Dakota's photo, Shanks spits out his drink, looking at the image of his grown-up daughter.

"She was with him," Hawk-eyes informs him, and Shanks takes her poster in his hands. "She's grown up rather strong. She wanted me to tell you some things. She has cut her precious hair." He says, and Shanks' eyes darken, but Hawk-eyes continues. "And she's gotten married." Shanks looks at him, and he seems lost, the others all look the same in fear of Dakota having grown up so much in their absence. "I hate to lie to you, but she told me that it was only a joke to see how upset you all would get." They all shake their heads in relief and happiness and cheer.

"We don't want our princess marrying some fool." Yasopp comments and the others cheer.

"She said to tell you she loves you all even her Father," Hawk-eyes says and the others all laugh but Shanks sulks not feeling in the mood for celebrating. "She has her Mother's spirit; she is with the boy." Shanks looks up at his friend and nods.

"Let's celebrate my darling daughter, our little devil!" Shanks exclaims, and he crew all cheer.

 **########**

 **Dakota's POV:**

We sit around Nami as she places the mad she took from Buggy back before I joined them. "We're getting very close to the Grand Line. the only way to get there is to go through 'Reverse Mountain'." Nami informs us and points on the map to the unique mountain.

"That's a pain in the ass. Can't we just go straight there, from the sea?" Zoro asks from his place.

"Nope. according to the old man's stories, it's the only way to get into the Grand Line." Sanji announces, and I look at him as do the others.

"Why's that?" Usopp asks.

"It's extremely dangerous," I state as I have taken it many times with my Father and alone.

"That's why I asked! Why?" Usopp presses further.

"I don't know any more than that!" Sanji snaps.

"The reason is-" Nami and I both start, but Luffy cuts us off.

"Okay! I got it. Let's go head-on through the front!" Luffy exclaims in glee.

"Are you even listening to me!?" Nami snaps at our Captain.

"Because won't it be more interesting? It'll definitely be more exciting that way!" Luffy beams.

"Argh… trying to explain things to you is driving me insane!" Nami groans in frustration.

"But what's most important is, we should stop at an island and buy some meat. Meat, meat!" Luffy yells, and Nami points to our next island.

"On this island, there is a famous city. Loguetown." Nami says, and Luffy looks at her in confusion.

"Loguetown? Are they famous for their meat?" Luffy asks, and I shake my head at his idiocy.

"It's also called, 'The Town of the Beginning and the End.' or so I've heard," Zoro interjects, and I nod my head.

"It's the place where the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger, was born. And also the place where he was executed." I add in and look at Luffy to see the determination burning in his eyes.

"The city where the Pirate King died…" Luffy mumbles with a longing look in his eyes.

"Wanna go?" Nami asks him.

"Yeah. I want to see it. The man who owned One Piece. The man who had everything in the world. The place where he was born and died." Luffy announces, and I nod with a grin.

 **########**

The sun isn't even up, and I already am with the rest of the crew, I push with Luffy to bring the anchor up. "RAISE ANCHOR! FULL SAIL!" Luffy shouts in my ear as we bring the anchor up for Zoro to bring up. "We're good to sail! Full speed ahead to the Grand Line! Sanji! FOOD! Food!" Luffy continues to shout as we walk out, and everyone finishes their duties.

"Alright, alright. Wait until I make it already!" Sanji calls out, and I walk back into our room, but I feel my stomach rumble as changing into my clothes could wait, I walk back out to see Luffy bugging Zoro in the corner.

"Aw, c' mon Zoro, let's play tag," Luffy complains.

"Whaat!?" Zoro questions looking over his shoulder.

"What? What? I wanna play! Let's do it! Let's do it!" Usopp encourages as he runs over to them.

"Are you retarded? How old are you two? I'm gonna take my pre-breakfast nap." Zoro shrugs them off and walks off with a yawn.

"He's afraid he's gonna lose." Usopp goads him, and he stops.

"What'd you say, bastard? That is not why!" Zoro snaps back.

"Ha! Look how mad he's getting!" Usopp continues to provoke him.

"Whaat!? Come back here, you son of a-" Zoro growls as the two run off and he gives chase.

"Oh, and name-calling now too, eh? Whoo! Naana!" Usopp taunts the swordsman as they run away.

"YOU!" Zoro growls as he chases after the sniper.

"Zoro, over here!" Usopp continues to taunt him as Zoro chases after him.

"Zoro! No fair, you have to play with me too!" Luffy complains as Usopp is getting all the swordsman's attention.

"I AM NOT PLAYING!" Zoro roars as he tries to catch them and Sanji walks out of the kitchen.

"Nami-san, Dakota-chan, breakfast is served. Hey, you losers! Time for grub!" Sanji calls out, and I walk up the stairs towards the kitchen still in my pyjamas.

"Aye!" Luffy and Usopp yell back and run towards the kitchen, leaving a disgruntled swordsman.

"Get your ass back here! I'm not finished with you!" Zoro yells after them.

"He said that to me, even back then," Nami mumbles to herself.

"What is it, Nami-san?" Sanji asks her.

"Oh, nothing. Ah! I'm so hungry!" Nami beams as she walks past and I walk in behind her unnoticed.

"Food! Food-food!" Luffy cheers as he walks into the kitchen.

 **########**

Luffy sits down at the table, with Nami as I wash my hands next to Sanji as I use my assassin skills to stay undetected, I really wanna spook them. "Looks so tasty!" Luffy cheers as he digs into the food.

"By the way, what do you suppose happened to Buggy?" Nami randomly asks.

"Buggy? Oh! That Buggy! Who knows, maybe he's off in the ocean somewhere." Luffy replies with his mouth full.

"It's hard to say," Zoro comments as he walks in with his hand around Usopp's nose pulling him inside. "When it comes to pirates, they're all different."

"Is that so? Bastard, what's your problem? You started it!" Usopp complains as he holds his nose in pain.

"I was a pirate hunter for a long time. I know a lot about them." Zoro remarks as Luffy steals his food.

"Are you just going to stand there, Usopp? Your food is disappearing. Nami-san, here's a special yoghurt treat just for you and Dakota-chan." Sanji says and places them down at our seats.

"Luffy! You ate all of my food again!" Usopp exclaims.

"Thank you, Sanji-Kun!" Nami says.

"GIVE IT BACK, JERK!" Usopp shouts at Luffy, and he tries to go for my food, and I smash my fork into his hand, he wails in pain as he retracts his hand and everyone gasps at my sudden appearance.

"DAKOTA!" They all shout, and I smile.

"Morning, everyone." I greet everyone, and Sanji suddenly faints on the spot with a stream of blood comes from his nose, I look around the table with Nami smirking shaking her head, Luffy just continues to eat his food and Usopp looks down as he eats not even looking at Zoro and me is looking away with a blush on his cheeks and I smirk to myself and look down to see I'm still in my PJs.

 **########**

I walk out of mine and Nami's room now changed into something a little less concealing as I walk up the stairs to the rear when a scream from above comes and goes, I look up but don't see anything and shrug it off. "Hey, did you just say something?" Luffy asks, looking to us.

"Me? Nothing." Nami answers and he looks to Usopp who shakes his head then I shrug my shoulders in reply.

"Weird, maybe it was my imagination." Luffy shrugs it off, scratching at his head.

"Hey, Luffy! Quit slackin' off!" Sanji scolds him, and I pick up a cloth and bucket to do the windows.

"Oh! Sorry, sorry." Luffy apologies and gets back to weeping the floor and the rest of us keep the ship in top shape.

 **########**

Finally, the cleaning is done, and we're closer to Loguetown, I sit up in the crows' nest on watch for the night as I slept in later than the others and Nami needs some time to sort out her maps in our room. I snuggle into the blanket as I listen to everyone aboard. "Sanji… gimme food…" Luffy mumbles still asleep.

"You just ate... have some... self-control," Sanji replies in his sleep.

"You guys shut the hell up. How am I supposed to get any rest?" Zoro snaps at them.

"You freakin' sleep all the time. Help out a little, will ya?" Usopp complains, and I shake my head at their antics.

"Arguing with each other in their sleep… they're such weird guys." Nami complains, and I have to agree but can't help smiling as I watch the calm ocean around us. "Well, I guess I should go to sleep too. Goodnight. Goodnight, Dakota." Nami calls out, and I watch over my friends till the morning sun rises.

 **########**

I walk out of the room in a new fresh change of clothes and walk up to the head of the ship where Zoro takes a nap and Luffy waiting looking out at the grove; seagulls fly overhead waking Zoro from his little nap. "Hey, I can kinda make out an island," Zoro calls out, and Luffy stretches his arms out to hold onto the railing bringing him to sit looking out as we approach the island.

"Eh? Really? What island is that?" Luffy asks as we all gather around.

"Didn't we go over that already?" Nami asks as we stand behind them.

"Ah?" He asks, turning to face us.

"So that's the island where Loguetown is." Usopp questions and looks in amazement at the sight of the town.

"It's a pretty big city." Sanji comments.

"Yes, it is, much bigger than it looks from here," I tell them, and they look at me for a second, and I shrug them off.

"They should have lots of good places to get fresh food," Sanji comments lighting his cigarette.

"I need to go to a weapon store. Three-sword style with only one sword just won't work." Zoro adds in.

"Yeah, I wanna check it out, too." Usopp agrees.

"On that island, Gold Roger was born and also executed," Luffy mumbles under his breath, I move over with Nami leaning next to Zoro as she does next to Luffy.

"Oh? So you do remember." Nami comments looking up at our Captain.

"The city where the pirate King died. A place called 'The Town of the Beginning and the End'." Luffy says, and I smirk as we are almost there and something in the wind is changing for the better.


	13. Loguetown: Causing Trouble Part 1

**LOGUETOWN: CAUSING TROUBLE PART 1**

 **Dakota's POV:**

We finally make it to Loguetown and stand in front of one of the gates to enter the city, "WHoo-hoo! Whoo-hoo! What a huge town!" Luffy exclaims looking around the buildings.

"Lots of pirates stock up at this town before heading out to the Grand Line," I inform them as I pull my bag over my shoulder, with all my supplies.

"You can get pretty much whatever you want here!" Nami adds-in.

"Alright! For my upcoming great adventure, I'm gonna need to get some cool stuff." Usopp comments and I nod pointing in the south-east of the city on the map I had in hand.

"The best places are there, but be careful, they're tricky over there," I warn him.

"Thanks, Dakota." He says, and I nod with a smile.

"I'll be there's lots of good food to check out here. And lots of good women!" Sanji gushes, and I shake my head at him.

"The markets are on the other side of the city by the water," I tell him not wanting to get closer to him in his dreamy state.

"There's something I wanna buy too." Zoro jumps in, and I look over at him.

"Oh? And how would you do that? You're totally broke, aren't you?" Nami teases him, and I shake my head at her antics, and he looks down at her in annoyance.

"I need to go meet some old friends," I mutter and feel the others looking at me.

"Hey, Sis, does one of your boyfriends live here?" Luffy suddenly asks me, and I look at him.

"Yeah, but I'll avoid him, I'm not going to be in the good part of town," I tell him, and he smiles, but I see the hint in his eyes, he wants to hurt the guy I once dated. "I'm not telling you who it is."

"Okay! I'm gonna check out the execution platform! I want to see it! The place where the Pirate King died! And beat up Dakota's old boyfriend!" Luffy shouts as he runs off, leaving the rest of us behind.

"Hey, hey! We haven't decided on a place to meet back up yet!" Usopp shouts after him.

"Luffy, you don't even know who he is!" I shout after him at the same time.

"Man… he's hopeless," Usopp complains as we watch Luffy disappear into the crowds.

"We'll meet back here at the end of the day, see ya then," I tell them as I walk off into one of the alleyways leading to the wrong part of town to see some old friends.

I walk through the narrow alleyways of old buildings with broken windows or doors; I smirk as I pass two men who look at me hungrily bit I ignore them as I feel them follow me.

* * *

 **3rd POV:**

At the Marine base in Loguetown, inside the communications room, the printer pushes out a wanted poster, then Marine soldier jumps to his feed then another pushes out, he runs off out of the room.

The Marine soldier bursts into the Captain's smoke-filled office, "Captain Smoker! There's an alert!" The shoulder exclaims and sees through the smoke his superior officer looking at him. "We've received notification from Marine Headquarters… that Monkey D. Luffy and his band of pirates are headed towards Loguetown! He's the East Blue pirate with a reward on his head for 30,000,000!"

"30 million, huh? Want me to congratulate him or something?" The Marine Captain asks in a snarky tone.

"He is the one who defeated Don Krieg and the Merman Arlong!" The soldier retorts eagerly.

"Shut the hell up!" He snaps as the object falls apart. "Damn your yelling… you broke it."

"Forgive me." The soldier replies, sincerely.

"Well, forget it. I have my own way of doing things. I work at my own pace. You know?" The Marine Captain asks his subordinate.

"Y-yes, sir." He agrees as his Captain opens the window and the smoke from his two cigars flow out of the room.

"So, you were saying?" He asks him.

"Sir, it seems there are a band of pirates headed for the city today... sir." He informs them with urgency in his voice.

"What are you getting all worked up for? Since I've been at this post, has there ever been able to get out of this city once they've entered?" He asks him as he puts his jacket on covering up his bare chest.

"Well, no…" He agrees hesitantly.

"I'll take care of it, at my own pace." He replies when another Marine soldier runs into the room through the open door.

"Yes…" The Marine soldier mutters under his breath.

"Reporting sir Pirates have been sighted at the harbour! Please come to confirm the situation!" The other Marine soldier exclaims.

"It's got to be the Luffy Pirates, sir! There weren't any others mentioned in the bulletin!" The first Marine Soldier remarks as he holds the Wanted posters in hand.

"30 million, huh? That's something I'd like to see." The Marine Captain thinks out loud.

"Huh?" The Marines questions their superior.

"Just thinking out loud. Forget it." He replies as he walks out of the room, and the second soldier runs after him.

"Don't you need these?" The first Marine soldier asks, but it falls on deaf ears, and he shakes his head. "Oh, no, I didn't tell him about the Red Devil."

* * *

Outside a run-down building, figures in cloaks step inside, two stand outside waiting for the rest and looking out for danger.

Inside the rundown building it's a dark gothic room with people sitting around, they look at the figures in cloaks walk inside, one of the characters walk up to the bar, he pulls out a small brown sack of coins and pushes them over to the barman. "I'm putting a bounty on the head of Monkey D. Luffy, to be given to me alive." The voice of Buggy orders and the barman takes the sack of coins.

"Very well, how much is he worth on the front?" The barman asks, and he pulls out a book full of Wanted Posters.

"He's a runt in a strawhat!" Buggy snaps and slams his hand down on the bar, startling everyone inside, they all jump to their feet raising all types of different weapons as the barman slowly looks through the books of Bounties and stops at Luffy's.

"Be careful in here, everyone has an itch to scratch, and I've found you're boy, we'll get him for you." The barman agrees and places the book back under the bar and pulls out a golden playing card; he slides it over to Buggy and smirks. "Keep that on you and have a good day."

"Why thank you." Buggy says, and the group of figures in cloaks walk back out, leaving a tense atmosphere that breaks as the barman laughs and the others join in.

Outside one of the figures stops Buggy and pulls him over to them as they look around the alleyway. "Boss, what is this place?" Caboji asks him in a whisper.

"It's called the Golden Campus, the place all Assassin go to get their jobs." Buggy informs them, and they straighten up in shock and look around carefully. "Let's get out of here."

* * *

 **Dakota's POV:**

I walk away from the two unconscious men who felt they had the right to touch me and I walk towards a rundown building, I've spent some time in and hold my breath as I open the large dark green door and step inside.

The inside hasn't changed, I walk to the bar where Tommy works, cleaning glasses. I pull out my deck of red cards and two golden playing cards with the names of two jobs, he takes the two cards and looks them over. "Anything new while I'm in town?" I ask him, and he nods as he gives me my money and another golden playing card, I turn it onto the back to see my baby brother's name written and my eyes glow red. "I hope this is a joke," I say through clenched teeth, and Tommy looks up at me.

"What's got you all twisted?" He asks me, and I grab his jacket, pulling him over the counter towards me.

"That's my baby Brother you want to kill, and I'll tell you now if anyone goes after him I promise you, you'll all be coming back here in pieces." I threaten him, and he nods taking the card back and rips it up. "Who placed the job?" I ask him, and he shakes his head, I let him go, making him fall back onto the floor, I walk across the room, passing the couches as other Assassins sit.

"Poor little Red Devil, she can't even kill a boy worth 30 million?" A smug voice from behind me taunts me, and I turn around to see a man sitting in the chair and I walk over to him, my shoes echoing around the silent room.

"Got something to say to my face?" I ask him, and he looks up at me as I stand over him.

"I just wonder why the great Red Devil won't till that puny little Strawhat boy?" He asks, and I smirk down at him before thrusting my hand out into his chest, I grip onto his heart, and he lets out a gasp of pain and shock.

"The reason is my own, but I'll tell you, he's my baby brother, and anyone who goes near him will end up like you." I threaten him and pull my hand out of his chest with his heart in my hand. I drop it to the floor and walk out as I out of the room with my money, and I smirk on my face taking a towel from the side.

* * *

I close the door behind me as I wipe the blood off my hand with the towel and throw it away before heading towards my favourite pub where I met him, but I shake the thoughts of him away and focus on my surroundings.

* * *

I walk down the steps to my favourite pub every time I visit this place and hear the old man's voice as I get closer. "But Gold Roger fought and killed him." The old man exclaims, and I shake my head, having heard this story too many times.

"Gold Roger did?" I heard a voice I know all too well, and I walk down the final steps and lean against the doorway to see Luffy sitting on one of the barstools while the old man sits at the table with a glass.

"It's a famous tale! He was a big, rough guy, with a big sword! The battle was decided pretty quickly." He weaves the story and points to the skull on the table. "This gash is what killed him." Luffy leans forward in his seat. "But he was really something. His last words were:"

"'Roger. No one can touch you. I praise you as the eternal pirate." Both the old man and I say at the same time, and I walk further into the room.

"Awesome! Cool!" Luffy exclaims in awe of his hero, and I shake my head.

"Still telling the same old stories, I see, old man." I joke and sit down next to Luffy.

"Dakota, what you doing here?" Luffy asks me, turning to face me as I sit down.

"To get a decent drink," I reply and let the old man continue his story as Luffy clenches his hands in anticipation.

"Of course. King, of the Eric Pirates… the famous gunner Silver-Silver… all were very dangerous men. Yet before Roger, they were like scared little babies." He rambles on, and I see Luffy shaking with excitement. "Wanna hear more?"

"Yeah!" Luffy exclaims.

"Nowadays youngsters don't usually take an interest in this stuff." The old man comments.

"I don't care, just tell me more!" Luffy lightly snaps, and I smack him over the head for his rudeness.

"Pesky kid! Gold Roger… back then… no, still today… he's the only pirate who truly didn't fear the dangers of the Grand Line. Because you see, the area known as the Grand Line is a place where ships disappear and are never seen again. Navigation is said to be impossible. Because people are so scared of it, they seldom come close to that cursed ocean. Saying that he cleared out all the booze in the bar and set off the next morning, as though there was nothing to fear. Later on, when I heard he had conquered the Grand Line, I was so surprised, I even forgot my age for a bit! But now, everyone has passed on. Roger was executed at the gallows here in town twenty years ago. And from that day, everyone's been going around with the audacity to call themselves pirates. They even call this 'The Great Pirate Age.' but it's all just a bunch of rubbish... cowards. Less and less people are daring to sail the Grand Line. and so, that is the reason this place will be closed down." The old man finishes his story, and I look around the old bar and smile at all the memories, good and bad.

"I'm… going to the Grand Line." Luffy announces with a happy tone.

"Huh?" He questions looking up at the giddy Luffy sitting in his seat.

"He was cool, huh? Gold Roger. Pirates should try to be like him. That's why I went out to sea to go to the Grand Line and find One Piece. I'm gonna be the Pirate King!" Luffy exclaims, and the old man looks at him in shock.

"That's a crazy thing to say! How could you say that, here in this place?" He asks with a laugh.

"What? But I'm just telling the truth." Luffy replies, and I know that's the truth.

"Kid, after having a customer like you, I feel like closing the shop a little later." He announces, and I smile, this place has too many memories to close down.

"Don't do that for me," Luffy tells him as he walks over around the counter.

"It's decided. There's nothing you can do to change my mind. It's been a long time since I had a customer. Drink's on the house." He says as he gets out three glasses.

"He doesn't drink," I tell the old man and he lets out a laugh.

"Is that so? Then how about this?" He offers up two glasses of milk for the two of them and passes me a glass of rum, my second favourite. "Cheers to him, to the Eternal Pirate King." He raises his glass to Luffy, who spins in his seat to face the old man.

"To the Eternal Pirate King!" Luffy cheers, and we clink our glasses together in cheers, and I hear footsteps growing closer.

"I think it's time for us to leave, thanks old man, keep the change," I tell him as I place a few berries on his counter and escort Luffy out the back entrance on the main street.

I walk alongside Luffy finally on Main Street, with Luffy looking around eagerly. "This is Main Street. Wonder if Gold Roger walked along this street." Luffy wonders aloud.

"He lived here once Luffy, of course, he did," I tell him and push him forward, letting out a laugh.

* * *

 **3rd POV:**

Inside the old pub Gold Roger, the old man continues to rummage around his bottles, and the Marine Captain sits on the stool when a Marine soldier walks inside with a pile of Wanted Posters in hand. "Hey! This is the new wanted listing. Post this somewhere visible." The soldier announces and finally takes notice of the room seeing his Marine Captain looking at him over his shoulder, startled he drops two pieces onto the floor. "C-Captain Smoker, sir! Excuse me!" Smoker takes notices of the pieces of paper on the floor, he gets up from his seat and walks over picking them up, he takes a good look at them.

"That Straw Hat… He's Monkey D. Luffy!" Smoker growls and moves the poster to the side and sees Dakota's poster with the new photo. "Dakota." He whispers with an almost lost look in his eyes.

"That's right sir, she's been spotted with the Straw Hat, sir." the soldier informs him, he clenches the posters up and runs.

* * *

 **Dakota's POV:**

I stand next to Luffy as he looks at the execution platform and I feel the sudden dread sink into my skin but shrug it off and walk around, hoping Luffy doesn't get into trouble when I hear clunking coming from the platform and turn to see him climbing it. Everyone around me turns to face the idiot as he climbs up the platform's frame, he slips up and almost falls but catches himself. "Hey!" A gruff voice shouts and I look over at the voice wit a shiver before hiding within the crowd. "Hey, kid."

"What is it? I'm kinda busy right now?" Luffy retorts back, and I sneak away walking out of the area. "Smoker?" I hear Luffy repeat and lets out a yell. I know he's looking for me, but I jump away knowing he can handle himself for now.

* * *

I walk down the streets as I need more weapons and I know some of the best places to buy weapons and head inside one of the shops, looking around and pick up a fighting bow. "I want to buy katanas." I hear a familiar voice; I look over to see the same green head of hair and walk over.

"Well, well, well. Welcome. Please take your time and look around. We've been in business for 200 years, you know!" The shopkeeper greedily greets him, and he slams his hand down on the counter with a handful of money.

"I've got 100,000. Sell me two katanas." Zoro tells him with a firm tone.

"What? Two katanas for 100,000?" The shopkeeper asks and sits down in his chair in defeat. "50,000 will only get you a crappy sword."

"Well, whatever you have is fine… I don't really have much money right now." Zoro tells him, and I see the shopkeeper's eyes shift to his remaining sword on his hit, and he begins to stutter.

"Oi, oi… th-th-that Katana - c-c-can I see if for a s-s-second?"

"What's got you all nervous?" I ask the shopkeeper as I walk over toward the counter, Zoro turns around to face me.

"Dakota, what are you doing here?" He asks me, and I place three daggers, a fighting staff and a pistol.

"Buying some weapons," I say in a teasing tone, and he hands over his sword to the old man.

"Weird old guy…" Zoro mutters as he passes over his sword, the old man looks at the blade with wide eyes in shock.

"Wow, what a beat-up old katana. But I'll give you a little something for it. I'll give you 200,000. Then you would have 300,000… and could buy three decent 100, 000 katanas!" The shopkeeper tells him eagerly.

"Huh? What're you talking about?" Zoro asks him.

"Okay! I'll give you 250,000… no, 300, 000…? 500, 000!" He continues to raise the price for Zoro's favourite sword.

"It doesn't matter how much you offer for that katana…" He tells the shopkeeper.

"Alright, you've got me, 650, 000!" He exclaims in frustration. "I got it, you businessman! I'll buy it for 800, 000" He begs, and I shake my head at him and hear footsteps come running towards the counter.

"Good day!" A female greets the shopkeeper as she walks to the counter between Zoro and I. "I've come to pick up my Shigure. Is he ready?" She asks and looks over at Zoro with joy. I clench my fist at her reaction and move over to the other side of Zoro. "oh! I'm so glad! You're okay! Earlier someone broke into the Marine base! And then I noticed you were gone! So, I was worried about you. But I'm so glad you're okay! But since you are safe… that means you rejected another person's charity and ran out on honest work. Your money. Take it back." The woman says and places some money in Zoro's haramaki as he stands there with his arms folded and a scowl. "I refuse to accept money from the kind of man who would do such a thing." she takes out a pair of glasses. "Look, I already bought new glasses too." I look at Zoro as he glares at the woman and I have to say I feel somewhat jealous of her but whatever.

"Wow! This katana, could it be? The Wado Ichimonji?" She takes it from the shopkeeper's hands, examining it. "It is the Wado Ichimonji, isn't it? What a beautiful suguha! This is definitely one of the legendary 21 O wazamono." She gets out a little booklet of all the types of swords and flips through the pages. "Look! Look at this. This is a sword that is worth more than 20, 000, 000! But… why would a person like you have such a famous sword?" She asks him, and the shopkeeper shakes with rage.

"YOU! You told him everything! You're ruining my business!" He shouts at her.

"Ruining your business?" She repeats. "I'm so sorry… did I say something bad?"

"You came here for your Shigure, right?" He asks her and pulls out a sword from under the counter. "Here! It's been sharpened. Now take it and get out!" He throws it at her, she tries to catch it but stumbles around and falls into the swords hanging on the wall, I let out a sigh at the clumsiness of her. "Why did you go that way? What is wrong with you?"

"I'm sorry." She whispers as she clutches her head.

"That ditzy girl saved you. This sword is actually one of the famous swords. Something an amateur like you doesn't deserve to carry." He says, and I clench my teeth together, not wanting to point out who he really is as we have a Marine present. "The 50,000 katana are over there in those bins. Go pick two of them out and get out of my store!" I cough, and he turns to me. "What can I do for you?"

"I left two chakrams to be sharpened here a year ago but was unable till now to collect it, and I want these," I tell him and push the three other weapons, he looks under his counter and pulls out my chakram.

"I've never seen blades like those before." The woman comments as she stands.

"I hope not, they were my Mother's before they were mine and come from her home island at the beginning of the Grand Line," I reply and walk over to Zoro as he rummages around the bins of swords. "Good view," I comment looking at his bent over, he looks over his shoulder with a startled expression as I smirk at him.

"Knock it off Kota." He warns me, and I shrug my shoulders.

"I didn't realise this was your woman." The woman announces, and we both look at her startled.

"No, we're not together," I tell her, and she smiles as if she knows something we don't.

"You… really like swords, don't you? Since you're carrying three of them." The woman comments as she stands beside me.

"It almost sounds like that one Bounty Hunter…" I tease him.

"A bounty hunter, eh?" Zoro teases back as he continues to look.

"He's very famous. His name is Roronoa." She adds-in but doesn't realise my teasing tone.

"I hear the name a lot," Zoro replies.

"Yes, he has a reputation throughout East Blue as a great swordsman. But he's an evil man! Using a sword as a tool to acquire money is… unforgivable! Why is it that this is an age where evil is so strong? The great swordsmen of the world are all pirates or bounty hunters. All the great swords of the world are in their hands, you see? The swords are crying." She says and holds her sword in her embrace, and this seems to put a smirk on Zoro's face.

"Well, different people have different circumstances, don't they? People's occupations are determined by the needs of the age." Zoro replies and I agree with him on that point.

"I swear with my Shigure… I will be a swordsman and improve my skills! And then I'm going to travel the world and free the swords from the hands of scum! The legendary 12 Saito O wazamono. The 21 O wazamono. The 50 Ryo Wazamono.I'll risk my life for it!" She declares her desire.

"You gonna take this katana too? Wado Ichimonji, you called it?" He asks her, sliding his blade at her.

"Oh! I didn't mean that I want to _have_ the swords! I just meant that I don't want them in the hands of evil people." She retorts, and I see Zoro grip onto the handle of one of the swords before pulling it out. "That katana… perhaps…" She pulls out her little book and flips through the pages again and stops. "Yes, that's it! Sandai Kitetsu. It's definitely Sandai Kitetsu. Its predecessor, the Nidai Kitetsu was one of the O Wazamono! And the Shodai Kitetsu was one of the Saijo O Wazamono!" She informs us, and I look at the blade as Zoro pulls the sheath away and I feel something strange from the katana. "Do you really want to sell this katana for only, 50, 000? That's amazing! It's one of the legendary works of sword-craft! You, you should get it! It's worth should be 1, 000, 000; that's a great deal!"

"No way! I won't sell it!" The shopkeeper exclaims seeming to fight the struggle within himself.

"I thought so! That sword for 50, 000… I thought it seemed strange…" She begins to argue.

"No, it's not that-" He tries to say as Zoro examines the sword.

"It's cursed." Zoro and I say at the same time and share a look.

"You knew?" The shopkeeper asks.

"No, I feel it." We reply at the same time looking down at the blade.

"Starting with the Shodai Kitetsu, they are all excellent katana. But they are all cursed. The swordsmen who have used the Kitetsu over the years… all of them came to tragic fates, mysterious deaths. You won't find a single swordsman in the world nowadays who will use a Kitetsu because everyone who used the sword is dead! I wanted to get rid of the damn thing, because of its curse. .." The shopkeeper spins the tale.

"I-I'm sorry! I had no idea it was such a terrible thing! I-I shouldn't have intruded!" She cries, bowing her head to Zoro, I shake my head as he raises the blade towards the ceiling, looking up at it with a smirk.

"I like it." He announces.

"Are you stupid? If I sell that to you and you die, then won't it be like I killed you?!" The shopkeeper exclaims and gets hit across the face by a big woman.

"You're the one being stupid! Just sell it!" She snaps at him, and I shake my head at the couple.

"H-honey!" He pleads with her.

"How about this? My luck… and this thing's curse. Let's see which one is stronger!" Zoro announces and flips the sword up into the air, the others all cry out in protest, but I know Zoro is meant to have this sword, I can feel it. The sword flips up towards the ceiling then down towards Zoro's outstretched arm; it misses his arm by millimetres, I hold my breath for a second before it hits the floor and sinks almost to the hilt, Zoro looks up with a big grin on his face. "I'll take it." He announces causing the other two to collapse onto the floor, and he picks up the cursed sword while I walk over to the counter, collecting my new weapons and paying. "Oi, pick out one more out for me, will you?"

"Ah… uh… yes-" She replies, fixing her glasses.

"W-wait!" The shopkeeper yells and runs to the back room and comes back out moments later carrying a case covered with a purple cloth and settles it clumsily onto the counter; he pulls the fabric away to reveal a katana clad in a black sheath. "The sheath, a black-lacquered long inlay. The blade an unrevealed edge with a small 'T'. One of the 50 Ryo Wazamono. The Yuboshiri! This may not be a big store, but it's the best katana I have." He announces, showing the blade.

"I can't buy it." Zoro reminds him. "I told you, didn't I? I don't have the money."

"No, forget the money. And I don't want any money for that Kitetsu either. I'm sorry for trying to cheat you before. It's been a long time since I last saw a true swordsman. They say 'a katana chooses its master'. I'll pray for your good fortune." The Shopkeeper says, and Zoro takes the swords, and we walk out leaving without the woman from the shop.

* * *

We walk along the street, I place my new weapons into my bag and almost trip, Zoro catches me, and I feel my cheeks grow hot. "Thanks," I whisper, looking ahead as we continue to walk.

* * *

 **3rd POV:**

At the Marine base, Captain Smoker sits in his chair in his office with four Marine soldiers awaiting orders. "Find Luffy! He must be hiding somewhere here in Loguetown! Find Dakota; she may be with Luffy!" One of the soldiers yells their orders.

"Yes, sir!" The three others yell back.

"Didn't I tell you that your yelling interrupts my 'pace'?" Smoker questions and places his feet up on the desk and holds Dakota's Wanted Poster. "They wouldn't bother to hide. It's okay. I'll catch him again, finally luring her to me."

 **Hey, another chapter out already! Sweet! Anyway please, don't ignore this as you may already know as of the 1st of August the poll will be closed for my next story and I want anyone who hasn't voted to please vote or even comment thanks! DEADGIRLETERNAL OUT!**


	14. Loguetown: Causing Trouble Part 2

**LOGUETOWN: CAUSING TROUBLE PART 2**

 **DAKOTA'S pov:**

Zoro and I sit down on some stairs near Main Street as he examines his new katanas and I pull out a book from my bag. "Cursed blade, eh? Interesting." He mutters to himself, and he stares at the blade when suddenly Luffy pops up startling us.

"Hey, that's a cool looking katana!" Luffy exclaims looking at the sword.

"What the hell, don't startle me like that!" Zoro snaps at him, and I put my book away.

"What're you doing here, Zoro, Dakota?" Luffy asks us.

"Same goes to you," I ask him as Zoro puts his sword away.

"Me? Well, I'm lost." Luffy states seeming almost proud of himself.

"Why are you proud about that?" Zoro asks him in shock at our Captain's response.

"Hey, do you know where the gallows are?" Luffy asks, but before I can answer shouts from behind him gain our attention, we look over to see a group of men surrounding Daddy Masterson. "What's this?" Luffy asks us, but we watch as the men shout at the bounty hunter before shots sound out and four of the men fall onto the ground leaving one standing behind him. The lone one standing stumbles back onto his ass as Daddy walks towards him and pulls out a cigarette from the kid's inner jacket pocket as the kid shakes in fear as Daddy crushes his cigarette.

"Go home and ask your Mama to bake you some cake, boy." Daddy taunts him and throws the crushed cigarette on him, and the kid runs off screaming in fear, I smirk, he hasn't changed.

"WOW! COOL! That old man!" Luffy exclaims too loudly.

"That man's probably…" Zoro says.

"That's right, Daddy the Father." I finish as we watch him walk away.

"I'm hungry!" Luffy complains and clutches at his stomach.

"Come on; I'll take you to a good restaurant near here," I tell him and stand with the boys following, we walk off towards one of the restaurants.

 **/\\\\\/\\\\\/\\\\\**

I sit at one of the tables in the middle of the restaurant, it was a nice place, and I pick up the menu, but I know what Luffy will want, the waiter walks over to our table seeming happy. "Can I get you any drinks?" He asks, and I put the menu down.

"We'll get a jug of water, and a bottle of wine and a bottle of rum," I tell him, he writes it down on his notepad. "Also we'll have two of everything on the menu please," I tell him he looks up from the notepad with shock. "They're hungry," I remark, and he nods before walking away.

The food soon arrives, filling the table along with our drinks, I take the rum from them while Luffy has water and Zoro has the wine, I dig into the food, scrapping some onto a plate in front of me while Luffy stuffs everything into his mouth.

Soon enough, he leans back in his chair having all finished our food, his stomach three maybe four times as big with a look of satisfaction on his face. "Man, I'm stuffed. I haven't had anything since I got into Loguetown. I was getting pretty hungry." Luffy states and I shake my head as I drink my rum.

"Actually, same here. I was starving, but I didn't have any money left on me. Good thing I bumped into you two." Zoro comments, filling his glass with more wine.

"If you mean for money, I don't have any," Luffy announces as Zoro gulps down his drink and slams his glass on the table angrily.

"What?!" He snaps at our Captain.

"Don't you have any?" Luffy asks him.

"Why the hell would I have any?" He asks him, and I know he left the money behind for the two katanas, and Luffy lets out a joyous laugh slamming his hand on the table.

"You have a point!" Luffy laughs.

"So, how are we gonna pay for this?" Zoro asks as if I'm invisible or assuming I have no money either as I stay quiet.

"Maybe they'll let us off." Luffy reasons when a sack of coins drops onto the rim of his hat, he looks up, and a gold coin drops out, he catches it in his hands looking at the coin with glee. "Woohoo! Lucky!" He exclaims and grabs the sack of coins before turning to the people behind him. "What, you're treating us?" He asks them. "How nice of you." We get up from our seats, and I leave a few bills under my glass as Luffy walks over to the person in a cloak and places the sack of coins back. "Thank you!" He flips the coin in the air before catching it and walking back over, placing the coin on the table, and Zoro walks over to the figure.

"Thanks for the food." Zoro thanks him and walks off and we leave the restaurant.

 **/\\\\\/\\\\\/\\\\\**

We walk off around the corner, and I hear shouting but shrug it off, as we walk around when a gust of wind pulls Luffy's hat from his head, he clutches onto the top of his head as he watches the strawhat float away. "Hat!" Luffy cries out as he runs after and Zoro walks beside me as we walk behind. "Ah! Wait! Wait, hat!" He shouts as he runs after turning the corner. Zoro and I turn the same corner but lose sight of him, and we continue down the street, and I look to my side with a sigh, Zoro had somehow gotten lost again. I look around me as people become startled and frightened, and I hear them murmuring among themselves, I strain my hearing when someone shouts.

"Strawhat Luffy's to be executed by Buggy, the Clown!" I look around with wide eyes for a moment before closing them to calm myself down.

" **Akuma-Akuma: Demon Shift!"** I whisper and disappear from the street in a flash of glimmering blue light.

 **/\\\\\/\\\\\/\\\\\**

 **3rd POV:**

At the Marine Base, Captain Smoker walks towards some stairs and takes a few steps before stopping looking over his shoulder. "What? You mean…" he asks.

"C-correct." the soldier answers. "In addition to Strawhat Luffy, Buggy the Clown and Iron Club Alvida are also here. They are East Blue pirate Captains with Devil's Fruit powers."

"Right here under my nose…" Smoker growls, "Brazen fools."

"What are your orders, Captain Smoker?" the soldier asks him.

"Order the first unit down to the harbour. Have the second unit surround the plaza from the streets. Have the rests standby at a distance from the plaza. That's all." Smoker orders and the soldier stands to attention.

"Yes, sir!" He replies.

"Give an order to the first unit. Find and destroy the pirates' ships! Don't let even one of those animals off this island. Especially Dakota Le Roux." Smoker growls as storm clouds roll over the city.

 **/\\\\\/\\\\\/\\\\\**

 **Dakota's POV:**

I make it to the main plaza where the execution platform stands; I look over to see Luffy at the top in the stocks with Buggy looming over him and his men and some woman below. I sigh in frustration and hear footsteps coming towards the plaza. Marines. I shift again to the top of the building away from sight. I listen in on the Marines plan along with keeping an eye on Luffy and Buggy on the platform. "Captain Smoker, please come look at this. Something strange is happening." A soldier announces, and I stiffen in place and jump away, not wanting to be too close anymore and get a better look at my baby Brother and Buggy.

I move over to the next building still out of sight and closer to the platform and can hear Buggy laughing his usual laugh. "Pirate, Monkey D. Luffy, I sentence you… for the crime of laughing at my misfortune and pissing me off… TO A FLASHY DEATH!" Buggy shouts with a laugh and his men cheer. "Flash it up, men!" His men obey and start shooting their guns into the air, cheering and dancing around.

"Ah. This is the first time I've ever seen an execution!" Luffy states with a grin and I shake my head at his naivety.

"It's _your_ execution." Buggy tells him and Luffy for a second point to himself.

"WHA-?! YOU'RE JOKING!" Luffy screams at Buggy with wide eyes.

"YOU'RE THE ONE WHO'S JOKING! AND NOW…" Buggy shouts back.

"Lemme go! Lemme out! Someone help! Help me~!" Luffy shouts out to the crowd, I almost go for him but stop myself short as Buggy shouts.

"OUR MAIN EVENT!" He shouts. "THE FLASHY EXECUTION… SHALL COMMENCE!"

"NO~!" Luffy screams in panic but stops when Buggy puts his foot on his head. "I'm sorry," Luffy says with no emotion. "I won't do it again. Please spare me."

"I'M NOT SAVING YOU, YOU NINNY!" Buggy shouts at him. "Any last words then? We've got quite a crowd here. Well, well, looks like you're speechless. You _are_ about to die, after all!" Buggy taunts him, and the wind picks up slightly as I feel it flow through my hair.

"I AM THE MAN WHO WILL BECOME THE PIRATE KING!" Luffy screams, and I smile as his words echo around the plaza, and everyone stands there in dead silence as they all stare at him and his declaration. For a long moment, everyone remains quiet when people seem to process what he's said.

"T-the Pirate King, he said? In this town of all places… what a bold statement." The citizens all murmur among themselves in the crowd.

"It's about time to end this, don't you think? Shitty rubber-kid!" Buggy says ever so calmly even for him as Luffy struggles to free himself.

"THIS EXECUTION...IS CANCELLED!" Zoro and Sanji shout together, I look over at them standing at the plaza entrance.

"Zoro! Sanji!" Luffy exclaims in glee, and I let out a sigh of relief.

"You really know how to make a ruckus. Aren't you taking this joke a bit far, Luffy?" Zoro asks him as the boys ready for a fight.

"If it's time for the sideshow, I guess I'll debut as well. It looks like we just have to get past these shitty pirates." Sanji comments and I move slowly across the top of the roof.

"P-Pirate Hunter… Z-Zoro!" Someone in the crowd shouts and they part ways, shouting in terror, and I smirk thinking how they'll react when I come into play.

"SANJI! ZORO!" Luffy shouts over to them.

"Here at last Zoro! Pity you're a tad too late!" Buggy yells and raises his cutlass to the air.

"The execution platform!" Zoro yells as the boys break out into a run straight ahead.

"Destroy it!" Sanji yells back as they run through the crowd heading for the platform.

"If you would so please, my dears!" The woman calls out, and more pirates head for the boys.

"And so we shall!" They shout back, "Lady Alvida!" They run straight for the boys, and Zoro cuts them down along with Sanji kicking them aside.

"Outta the way!" Zoro growls, and I see one of the pirates going for him, and I shift off of the roof down into the plaza, before I touch down I get out my green and black blade knife from its thigh holster before skidding on my knees towards the back of the pirate. I slice across the back of his knee; he buckles under the pain as I get to my feet slightly crouching down and take his foot further away from me in my hand. I pull his foot towards me, and he loses balance and falls on his back in a cry of pain, I stand up fully aware of all the stares.

"DAKOTA!" Luffy shouts, and I look up staring at him then shift my eyes up at Buggy who quivers at the hardened glare I get from my Dad.

"LE ROUX!" Buggy screams in fright, but before I can shift a brave minion swings again at me, I bend back out of the way, landing on my shoulders and hands, I push myself back up onto my feet, I stand still as more pirates surround me, I flip my knife and arch my back around cutting deep into pirates, they all cry out in pain as they fall to the ground and Buggy lets out a laugh. "Try all you want; you can't stop me now! This is the end of your Captain!"

"You god damn bastard!" Sanji growls as we fight our way through the pirates towards the platform and Buggy lets out a laugh.

"ZORO!" Luffy shouts and said swordsman stops. "SANJI! DAKOTA! USOPP! NAMI!" He calls out our names, and we stop looking up as Buggy brings down his cutlass and Luffy looks up with a big ass grin on his face. "Sorry. I'm… DEAD."

"N-!" Zoro begins to shout.

"Don't say that, bastard!" Sanji shouts, and I feel an electrical current strike through the air before a bolt of lightning strike down towards the execution platform, shocking everyone as the light blinds everyone and the platform cracks under the current. Buggy is engulfed in blue fire while a piece of the platform's metal structure falls to the ground and the rest of the rig catches on fire. Droplets of rainfall from the sky before it becomes a torrential downpour and the platform still on fire falls on its side, and I look up at the sky in shock when I see Luffy's hat floating down. I stand in my spot as everyone else still in shock and look down as the hat settles on the ground, Luffy picks his hat up putting it back on, I let out a sigh of relief to see him safe.

"Hey, I'm alive! I'm okay!" Luffy states with a cheery tone as everyone around him, including myself, stare in shock.

"Hey, you believe in God?" Sanji asks, and Luffy walks over to us.

"Phew, what a relief… I thought I was a goner there." Luffy comments.

"This isn't the time to ask about that. We're blowing this town. Looks like the danger's not over yet." Zoro states and I nod in agreement knowing the Marines will soon move in on us, as I think this I hear a shout before Marines rush in from every exit encircling us.

"Why them?" Sanji huffs as the Marines begin fighting with the other pirates, pirates come towards Luffy, and he jumps out of the way as Marines knock them away.

"Awesome! What a huge fight! Cool! Super cool!" Luffy cheers as he jumps out of the way of another falling pirate and Zoro grabs the back of his shirt startling him.

"Luffy!" He snaps, and Luffy looks behind him, hearing his voice.

"O-oh, Zoro!" He gulps.

"Quit standing there watching! We're leaving." Zoro snaps.

"If we don't get back to the ship in time, we won't be able to leave the island! Then we can't get to the Grand Line!" Sanji points out.

"What? We better go then!" Luffy agrees, and we break off into a run.

"The Strawhat Crew is retreating!" a Marine soldier shouts to the others as we run away. "Stop them! After them!" As they shout a group of them run towards us, the boys knock them out of the way as I punch them out of my way along with them.

 **/\\\\\/\\\\\/\\\\\**

 **3rd POV:**

At the Marine hideout in one of the buildings facing into the plaza with Marines and Pirates fighting, Captain Smoker stands, staring into space when one of his men speaks. "Captain. About capturing those pirates…"

"Hey, you. You ever seen a pirate that smiles at the execution platform?" Smoker asks him.

"N-never. Even the greatest of bluffers… turned pale with fear just before they died." He replies.

" _He_ was smiling. That man with the Straw hat. 22 years ago… at his own execution, the Pirate King Gold Roger, smiled the very same way." Smoker comments thinking back to then.

"Captain…" He mutters under his breath.

"Where's Straw hat and Red Devil?" Smoker inquires roughly looking over his shoulder.

"They're currently retreating towards the harbour." He reports.

"What of the first unit? They should've destroyed the ships by now." Smoker asks as he walks past him.

"They reported that… due to the sudden rain… their gunpowder was ruined. They're returning now for a fresh supply." He informs him looking down at the floor in fear.

"They're _what_?" Smoker growls stopping mid-step.

"As backup, we have the shoreline guard ready at your disposal." He assures him, turning around.

"Captain Smoker, if they pull out to sea. They'll be able to reach the Grand Line!" The swordswoman remarks turning around also.

"The wind's blowing west. They've got a perfect tailwind… can all this be coincidence? It's like Heaven itself is keeping that man alive…" Smoker grumbles to himself, looking up at the sky. "Or is it the devil?" He wonders as he thinks of Dakota and her reappearance back into his life after a year. "I, Smoker the White Hunter… swear now as a Captain of the Marine Headquarters. That man and woman shall not leave this island!"

 **/\\\\\/\\\\\/\\\\\**

 **Dakota's POV:**

We run down the street heading for the harbour where the Going Merry sails hopefully with Nami and Usopp onboard. "We have to get out of here now!" I yell at the boys.

"Let's get to the Grand Line." Luffy cheers as we run full speed towards the harbour.

"What kinda storm is this?" Zoro questions.

"If we don't hurry, we won't be able to get off this island. Nami-san wasn't kidding when she said to get back to the ship as soon as possible!" Sanji comments.

"Run! Run! Run!" Luffy cheers as he runs in front of us.

"Which way is the damn harbour!?" Zoro snaps.

"It's raining so hard; I can't tell which direction!" Luffy replies.

"There they are!" Marines soldiers shout from behind us.

"Damn, they're persistent!" I snap, looking behind my shoulder at them. "Wanna stop and fight 'em?"

"No, there's no time…" Sanji replies and looks up ahead. "WHO IS THAT LADY?" He gushes, and I look to see the woman from the weapons store, standing in front of us, blocking our path.

"So you're Roronoa Zoro, a pirate. I… you lied to me!" She yells, and Sanji stops his chivalry getting the better of him.

"WHAT?! WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO TO HER!?" Sanji demands, and we come to a stop in front of her.

"You never asked my name, that's all. I never lied to you." Zoro tells her as he walks a little towards her before stopping.

"A scoundrel like you wielding such a magnificent katana… unforgivable! Your katana, the Wado Ichimonji… shall be confiscated!" She shouts, and I shake my head in disbelief.

"Just try it." Zoro replies and she lets out a battle cry going to strike but he blocks it with his Ichimonji, and they stare at each other for a moment before Zoro pulls back, and they strike at each other again but block.

"You bastard! How dare you attack a woman!" Sanji scolds Zoro.

"Stay out of this, please!" She shouts at him. "This is a match between Roronoa and myself. Leave us alone!"

"You heard her," Zoro adds in. "Go on ahead." He tells us not facing away letting his guard down.

"Let's go." Luffy agrees and runs past the two swordsmen, and I join him, dragging Sanji behind.

"Zoro! If you hurt her, you're a dead man!" Sanji warns him as I drag him away.

"Sergeant Major Tashigi!" A Marine soldier shouts at the woman, and I hear more strike between the blades along with another.

 **/\\\\\/\\\\\/\\\\\**

I keep dragging Sanji behind me for a way so he won't run back to stop Zoro fighting with the Marine woman. "There's the end of the street! The harbours just over there!" Luffy shouts over the heavy downpour, and I look through to see someone in front of us.

"Hey, who's that up ahead?" Sanji asks, and I get a better look to see Smoker standing with his bike blocking our exit.

"Here at last? Straw hat Luffy. Red Devil Dakota." Smoker says, and we stop in our tracks. "I told you if you can't beat me… you will never get to the Grand Line."

"Oh yea, I forgot about that!" Luffy comments with a grin, but I move my hand into my back pockets to get my knuckle dusters.

"You enjoy playing dumb." Smoker growls.

"Hey, Luffy," Sanji mutters to him.

"Sanji, Dakota. Go on ahead." Luffy orders us, but I know Smoker won't let me pass. "I'll be right there."

"I wouldn't bet on that. This is the end for you." Smoker growls as he steps forward.

"Go!" Luffy shouts, and Sanji runs, but I stay where I am. "Dakota! Go!" He shouts, but I shake my head.

"No way, you won't beat him, Luf," I tell him and he looks at me with such determination and I nod in agreement before breaking out in a run, Smoker darts to the side about to hit me when I use Armament Haki around my hands and knuckle dusters hitting him away from me. I run away leaving my baby Brother behind, and I felt the guilt hit me more as I can feel the stare of them both on my retreating form.

 **/\\\\\/\\\\\/\\\\\**

I catch up with Sanji as we reach the harbour with Marines firing at the Going Merry which is sailing out. "NAMI-SAN!" Sanji calls out to her as we run towards the ship.

"Dakota! Sanji-Kun!" She calls back as we run across the coast.

"Dakota! Sanji!" Usopp calls out.

"Nami-san, I'm back~!" Sanji shouts over to her.

"What about Luffy and Zoro?" She asks us.

"Those two louts can take care of themselves!" Sanji replies as the Marine soldiers run after us.

"Dakota! Sanji-kun!" Nami shouts a warning.

"Behind you!" Usopp warns us, and I turn around, knocking them away along with Sanji, but there are more coming for us.

"Shit! They just keep coming!" Sanji curses as he looks around us, I hear a splash from behind us, and some of the Marines go down, I look over to see Usopp in the water using his slingshot. Sanji and I on the land kick and punch more Marines out of our way with more coming our way.

"Usopp! Dakota! Sanji-Kun!" Nami calls out to us with worry in her voice as more Marines run towards us when suddenly a strong wind current pushes us off of the ground, sending us away along with everything else.

 **/\\\\\/\\\\\/\\\\\**

I end up with the boys still close to the harbour under some rubble from the strong winds that have stopped; I shake off the rubble feeling the bruises forming along my arms and stomach. I get up along with the boys and look around in wonder at what kind of wind that could have been when I hear Nami shout out to us. "LUFFY!" I look over along with the others to see that the Going Merry is sailing away with Nami still onboard. "LUFFY!"

"Nami!" Luffy calls back.

"We have to do something fast, or she'll drift out too far," Sanji warns him and runs off.

"I got it…!" Luffy shouts and runs in the other direction, we all watch him run. " **Gomu Gomu no…"** Luffy runs over past some stairs and catches his hands on them and pulls himself back with the momentum.

"Oh, no." Usopp cries out, and I look with wide eyes.

"He wouldn't…" Sanji cries out alongside.

"Aw, shit." Zoro curses as Luffy begins to push forward.

" **Rocket!"** Luffy shouts as he comes sailing towards us, we try to outrun him but can't as he knocks into us and we go flying.

 **/\\\\\/\\\\\/\\\\\**

We fly towards the ship's sails, in a bundle of body parts, falling onto the deck groaning in pain from Luffy's daft idea. "Guys!" Nami beams at the sight of us, we get up untangling ourselves from one another and look out to the choppy sea around us.

"It feels like the ship's gonna turn over!" Luffy yells as we look and I notice a light.

"Look at that light!" Nami yells over the raging storm.

"The island's lighthouse!" Usopp questions as he hugs the mast.

"That's our 'guiding light'. The light that points to the entrance of the Grand Line." I explain feeling nostalgia seeing it again.

"The Grand Line is over there?" Luffy says in awe as he looks at the lighthouse.

"What now?" Nami asks our Captain.

"But are you really gonna go in a storm like this?" Usopp asks us, and we all look back at him in the form of agreement.

"Alright! Let's have a little launching ceremony to mark the importance of our voyage!" Sanji suggests.

"Yeah, great!" Luffy agrees.

"Let's do it!" Nami agrees also.

"To find All Blue!" Sanji declares and puts his foot atop the barrel with the rest of us surrounding it.

"To become the Pirate King!" Luffy declares the obvious as he too puts his foot on top of the barrel with a big grin.

"To be the greatest swordsman!" Zoro declares his with a smirk and puts his foot on the barrel.

"To draw a map of the world!" Nami declares hers putting her foot on the barrel.

"I-I'm… to become a brave warrior of the sea!" Usopp shouts his declaration and places his foot on top of the barrel, the others all look at me.

"To avenge my Mother's death!" I declare and place my foot between Zoro and Usopp's feet.

"LET'S GOT TO THE GRAND LINE!" Luffy shouts, and we raise all our legs into the air.

"AYE!" We all shout in agreement and smash our feet down on the top of the barrel, smashing it to pieces from the force.

 **Should I Continue with Soul Eater: 23**

 **Don't Continue with Soul Eater: 27**

 **Batman Begins/Dark Knight - Mrs Bodyguard Wayne: 2**

 **Batman: Under the Red Hood - Scarlet Sinner: 3**

 **Black Butler - Demon Love: 8**

 **Black Lagoon - Rocky Wave: 5**

 **Blue Exorcist - Little Lucifer: 11**

 **Buffy the Vampire Slayer - English Lovers: 4**

 **Death Note - My Light: 3**

 **GANGSTA - Sign in Love: 5**

 **Haikyuu! - Beautiful Light: 6**

 **Hunter X Hunter - Hunter and Assassin: 3**

 **Kuroko no Basket - The Other Purple Giant: 3**

 **Kuroko no Basket - Miracle Coach: 5**

 **Lucifer - Demon Dog: 7**

 **Nanbaka - Nanba Prison Genius: 2**

 **Naruto - Twin Haruno Part I: 13**

 **Once Upon A Time - The Historian: 5**

 **Ouran High School Host Club - The Shadow King's Punisher: 9**

 **Satan is a Part-Timer - The Devil's Empress: 8**

 **Tokyo Ghoul - Nightmare: 3**

 **Treasure Planet - Their Treasure: 6**

 **As you can see from the results from all the polls that I will not, for now, be continuing with my Soul Eater story and will be starting as of August 20th with my Naruto story. Thank you for all your votes and see ya soon! DEADGIRLETERNAL OUT!**


	15. The Grand Line Can Wait: Part 1

**THE GRAND LINE CAN WAIT: PART 1**

 **Dakota's POV:**

It's been two days since we escaped Loguetown with hopefully everything we need for the Grand Line and the storm has for now blown over, but once we get closer to Reverse Mountain, it'll start up again. Everyone is outside at the moment in the sun at the front of the ship apart from Usopp. He's in the crow's nest on the lookout while I'm in the cabin at the top with the kitchen along with the helm as I steer the ship and I can still hear the others. I pull at my sleeve of the navy blue floral short jumpsuit as it slips again and I move some of my scarlet hair from my shoulder falling down my back still half up and down with a braid keeping most of it out of my face.

I keep thinking of our time in Loguetown and glad that we made it out of there, but I know Smoker, he won't let us get away he'll catch up with us sooner or later, but for now, I'm glad we're heading for the Grand Line. "Nami! Aren't we at the Grand Line yet?" Luffy questions from his new favourite seat on the figurehead at the bow of the ship while Sanji stands in my sight and I can see Zoro snoozing again on the railing and Nami looking at the map she stole from Buggy before Usopp, Sanji and I joined the crew.

"We just left Loguetown two days ago. It's gonna take a few more days to get there. Just be patient." Nami tells him, and I laugh under my breath at Luffy's antics as he gives her a big grin.

"Okay!" Luffy agrees with a laugh.

"What a beautiful day! It's like that storm never happened." Sanji comments but he's looking at Nami, and I shake my head as I tilt the steering to the left slightly to keep on course.

"Hey! I can see a big flock of birds off to starboard!" Usopp shouts out, I move away and walk over to the window facing over the left side of the ship and see the flock of birds.

"Birds?" Luffy questions, looking up towards Usopp.

"Yeah, and in the water, I can sort of make out a pretty big… ah, I can't tell. What do you think? Maybe a fish?" Usopp calls down.

"Akuma-Akuma: Demon Mode: Eyes From Hell," I whisper and close my eyes then open them as they shift into a yellow tone as I focus on the flock of birds and see in the sea a small rowboat half in the water.

 **############**

"What on a rowboat?" I ask as I walk out of the cabin.

"Well, it does kinda look like a big fish…" Usopp replies as he tries to get a closer look and I shrug my shoulders in response, I close my eyes deactivating the cat eyes.

"I hear that when sea birds flock over the ocean, it's usually because there's a school of fish around." Sanji comments and I move walking down the stairs moving towards the bow.

"FISH!" Luffy exclaims with a big grin as I climb up the stairs as he moves over to the side crouching.

"Luffy, catch us some lunch," Sanji tells him, and I walk over standing next to the sleeping Zoro.

"Gotcha!" Luffy agrees, standing to his feet on the railing and swings his arm back. "Gomu Gomu no Net-Catch!" His arm stretches far out before he swings it over towards the sinking boat and flock of birds.

"Whoo! Nice stretching!" Usopp cheers.

"What a handy guy." Sanji comments with a smile as Luffy's arm stretches out towards the rowboat grabbing the object and it and his arm coming back fast.

"Got it!" Luffy confirms, and it gets closer, looking less like a fish to me. "It's a huge one!"

"Nice Luffy!" Nami praises him, but it's coming in closer.

"H-hold on!" Sanji warns him as his arm still slightly stretched comes around. "What about when it comes back-" He begins to say and we dive out of the way, but Zoro is the unlucky one as the small human body smacks into him with force sending him flying. I get to my feet watching as Zoro cries out in shock as he saw through the air before splashing down in the ocean, I giggle before grabbing some rope from the side and making it into a lasso and swing it around my head.

"Ah, sorry, Zoro." Luffy gives an offhand apology as I let the lasso go and it lands around Zoro.

"YOU DAMN MORON!" Sanji curses him, and I reel Zoro in from around his waist up the side of the ship.

"One day… I am… going to kill him…" Zoro vows, and I laugh as I pull him over the side and look over the little girl that Luffy saved.

"Hey, look this ain't a fish at all!" Sanji says as Usopp, Nami and him crowd around her unconscious body.

"It's a little girl," Nami states the obvious observation, and Luffy walks over seeming curious.

"Eh? A mermaid? Where's her webbing?" Luffy asks, and I shake my head as I give Zoro a towel to get himself dry.

"Gimme a break." Usopp snaps at him. "How the heck does she look like a mermaid?"

"But why would this girl be out on that tiny rowboat?" Nami questions and I walk over to see the poor unconscious little girl; she looks dehydrated and soaking, meaning she was in the story.

"It doesn't matter, for now, we should get her dry and comfortable," I tell them and push past them and gently pick the girl up, she doesn't weigh much, and I walk back down the stairs. "It's about lunchtime, isn't it? Sanji I'm feeling a little peckish." I tell him and look behind over my shoulder, fluttering my eyes as I say this, he gives me the right reaction as he looks at me with a lovesick look in his eyes.

"Of course, My Love!" Sanji exclaims and dashes off down the other stairs across the deck to the cabin with the kitchen.

"You have to show me how you do that." Nami comments and I look over at her doing the same movements causing a blush to creep onto her cheeks.

"Sure, I've got time tonight," I reply and walk down the rest of the steps onto the deck, but Luffy beats me to the top of the next set of steps as he runs over smelling Sanji's cooking.

 **############**

Inside the cabin, Sanji stands over the stove as I gently place the girl onto the makeshift bed and pull out a blanket covering her up. "Akuma- Akuma: Hell Fire," I whisper under my break feeling my hands warm up and spark into life, the fire is a dark blue surrounding my hands as I move them over the girl's body to dry her clothes. The others all walk in behind me and sit down awaiting Sanji's food, and I double-check if she's okay and moves over to sit down between Luffy and Nami.

"Seem like a natural with little kids." Usopp comments, looking over at the kid.

"I mean I am the oldest here, and I had to look over my baby brothers," I tell them, but they don't seem to catch the last part, and I look to my left at Luffy as he grins at me.

"You were always looking after me." He replies and laughs.

"Well, you were always getting into trouble," I remark with a laugh, "remember how you got that scar." I look at him, and he looks as if he's remembering. "You were so upset my Dad wouldn't take you seriously and stabbed yourself, then cried as Makino fixed you up." I laugh, and the others all join in but Luffy as he sulks. "Come on, Luf. remember when we bet Yassop that he couldn't hit that tree about a mile away and we jumped him as he made the shot?" I ask him, and he looks at me before laughing, and Usopp leans in as I mention his Dad.

"Yeah, he got so angry with you, refused to talk to you for about a day, but you just said that you would hold your breath if he didn't stop. You went blue in the face." Luffy laughs, and I join in.

"Never worked on Benn." I pout and laugh but stop as I get up walking over to the girl feeling her forehead, it's hot, I walk over to the sink taking a fresh towel soaking it with lukewarm water and placing it on her forehead. "I wonder why she was out there, during the storm," I comment as I sit down.

"What makes you think she was?" Zoro asks as he looks at me.

"She's soaking wet, and the rowboat she was in was sinking," I tell him, and I look over my shoulder at the unconscious girl as she lies there still.

"I'll change the press," Usopp tells me and gets up from his seat across from us walking over, he takes the old towel off and walks over to the sink, replacing it before he can the girl sits right up smacking into Usopp's head.

"Ouch!" The girl cries out, touching her head in pain.

"So you're awake. And even more lively than I expected." Nami comments and the girl looks over at us.

"You hurt anywhere?" I ask her and stand up, walking over to her. "You must be hungry?"

"I'm whipping up some soup now," Sanji tells her, and she looks up at the ceiling in wonder sussing out where she is.

"Lucky." She cheers, and I giggle, she looks over at me, blushing at herself.

"Were you in some shipwreck or something? You were really in trouble out there. What's your name?" Nami asks her, and the girl looks over at her as I help Usopp sit up.

"When you ask someone's name, you're supposed to say your own first." She replies and I smile at her cheeky behaviour.

"Okay, my name is Nami. the guy making the soup in the kitchen is Sanji." She says and points over to him as he greets her. "The guy with a mean face and haramaki is Zoro."

"Shut up." He growls from his spot, and I giggle to myself.

"And the guy seeming unconscious over there is Usopp. And the lady helping him out is Dakota." Nami does the introductions, and I wave at the girl who smiles back at me.

"I'm Luffy. The Captain of this here pirate ship." Luffy introduces himself too openly and puts the poor girl into shock.

"PIRATES!?" She exclaims with her mouth hanging wide open; I get up smacking Luffy on the back of the head for his stupidity.

"We're heading to the Grand Line!" Luffy exclaims not realising what he's saying.

"What's wrong?" Nami asks the poor girl.

"She ain't moving," Luffy comments as they stare at her.

"What're you gonna do with that kid?" Zoro asks our Captain.

"Well now that you mention it… what should we do…?" Luffy ponders but seems to give up. "I'll think about it tomorrow." Sanji serves up the food along with an extra bowl for the girl, I take it over to her, but she doesn't take a sip of the soup, I sigh and sit down across from Nami keeping an eye out for the kid. Sanji sits down next to me, meaning I'm between him and Zoro and I eat making sure Luffy doesn't take any of my food and Usopp eagerly joins us at the table.

"Who's going on watch tonight? I did last night." I bring it up, and Zoro looks away as if he hasn't had all the naps he needs, but I know he had the night before me. "I say we take a rotation, it'll be easier, and we kind of do anyway though Luffy has avoided doing it for the last two weeks," I comment, and he pouts. "It was me last night, before that it was Zoro, Usopp and Nami, either Luffy or Sanji should do it tonight."

"I'll do it tonight. I can keep an eye on the kitchen." Sanji volunteers and we all agree.

"That means it's Luffy tomorrow night," I explain, and we continue to eat, and still the kid won't take a bite.

 **############**

I change into my PJs as Nami finishes off her charts and take the braid out of my hair, letting it fall in waves around my face, I tug down the narvy blue nightdress when we hear a crash from across the deck. I look at Nami, and she looks back at me. "Luffy." We say together and walk out of our room along with Zoro and Usopp from their room.

 **############**

We all walk over to the cabin across the deck and look inside to see both Luffy and the girl sitting at the table enjoying some of Sanji's food with him standing over them, the girl drinks right from the bowl hungrily and puts it down. "Oh, it's delicious!" She gushes.

"Of course it is, I personally picked Sanji as our chef." Luffy boasts a little.

"I've never had something this delicious!" She says.

"So she's finally come around." Nami comments and the three of them look over at us all standing at the door.

"Nami-san! Dakota-chan!" Sanji greets us with a lovesick look in his eyes as always, and a blush creeps up his cheeks same as Usopp and Zoro as I'm in my PJs.

"Luffy are you eating again?" Nami asks the obvious, and I walk further into the room and sit next to the girl who looks up at me with a blush of embarrassment.

"But I didn't have enough at lunch…" Luffy tries to argue.

"You had two whole pots full," I argue back.

"Did I?" Luffy questions scratching at his head, feigning forgetfulness.

"You got scared when you heard we were pirates, didn't you?" I ask her; she looks at me as Nami and the others walk inside.

"Well…" She tries to explain.

"Well, I guess that's just the natural reaction nowadays." Nami comments and she looks ahead looking as if she feels guilty.

"You won't sell me off?" She asks us.

"You thought we would?" Usopp asks her in shock, but it isn't uncommon among some pirates.

"Everyone must've seemed pretty scary, eh?" Zoro asks, and Usopp pulls at his cheek, irritating Zoro.

"With this face, you think you're one to talk? What are you hitting me for?" Usopp asks as they hit each other, and we all watch their squabble.

"Would you two cut it out?" Nami asks them as Luffy laughs and the little girl giggles a little.

"There's more if you would like, little lady?" Sanji asks her, moving a little closer to Luffy won't overhear.

"At the very least, this isn't the kind of pirate ship you thought it was. Relax." I tell her, and she looks up at me with a bright smile.

"More, please!" She exclaims, raising her bowl.

"Right away, madam." Sanji agrees and walks over to the stove.

"Me too!" Luffy joins in.

"DO IT YOURSELF, BASTARD!" Sanji curses at Luffy.

"Meanie…" Luffy sulks, but Sanji gives in placing more food in front of them, and I get up from my seat walking over to the fighting Usopp and Zoro, I pull them apart.

"Knock it off you two." I scold them and walk back over sitting next to the little girl

Soon enough the little girl seems sleepy and falls onto my side, I gently pick her up and place her back on the makeshift bed pulling the blanket over her before turning the light out, and everyone walks out, and we head to be minus Sanji as he's still on watch.

 **############**

Morning follows soon, and we all awake ready to set sail, Luffy brings up the anchor by himself this time with Zoro placing it on the railing safely as Sanji and Usopp unfold the sails again while Nami and I get dressed, I button up the last of them on the side of my white long summer dress when the ship seems to shake. "W-what?!" Nami exclaims as she stands, looking over at me in shock trying to put her shirt on, I walk outside with Nami the girl is standing outside the kitchen door seeming rather happy with black clouds of smoke billowing out from behind her.

"I don't like the look of this," I mutter, and we walk over to the kitchen.

 **############**

Inside we all sit down at the table, I sit between Nami and Zoro in front of all of us is a charred mass of something, we all look at it with wary and nervousness while Sanji looks at us as we all know how he feels about wasting food and the girl grinning happily. "Ehehe… you made it all by yourself?" Nami asks her sheepishly.

"It has a rather… unique appearance." Usopp comments not wanting to offend the small girl.

"Time to eat!" Luffy exclaims happily not bothered, and I knew why some of the food when we were younger was questionable.

"On top of saving me, you're even feeding me. So, from now on, I'll do anything I can to help!" She tells us with a grin.

"That's great to hear." Nami comments, "Thank you."

"Are you sure this is edible?" Zoro asks, getting a closer look, I glare his way and stomp on his foot, he yells out in pain, I grab my plate and tilt the contents into his wide open mouth.

"Quit being such a baby and eat it!" I snap at him as I push his mouth closed.

"But you really think it's okay to eat?" Usopp questions, looking at the mass on his plate.

"Whaddya talking about? It's great." Luffy states as he chews on the food, but I hold my breath.

"There you have it," Sanji says as he leans over the table. "I'm sure it only looks bad." He takes a fork full of the mass along with Nami and I wait.

"You sure about this?" Usopp asks and puts it in his mouth, and they all turn red and purple in the face, and I giggle looking next to me at Zoro as he turns blue and they all yelp getting them all a glass of water, I place them on the table, they gulp it down hastily.

"Was it really that terrible?" The girl asks us and tries a piece for herself, her face too turns red and purple from the heat. "TOO SPICY!" She yells. "What happened? Did I use too much seasoning?" I hand her a glass that she drinks from.

"Well, everyone makes that mistake. Just make sure to watch for it next time." He tells her and I pick her up moving Luffy over; she clings to me as I sit down next to him. "Hey, this girl put her heart and soul into that food, don't leave a crumb." He tells us, and both Usopp and Zoro try to protest. "Shut up! You'll hurt her feelings, this girl- come to think of it what is your name anyway?"

"Apis! My name is Apis!" She introduces herself with a smile, and she looks up at me as I keep her in my lap.

"Apis-chan's feelings are at stake! I'll beat the hell out of anyone who leaves a scrap of food!" Sanji warns us, and I take my plate from across the table and take a bite, it reminds me of my Dad's cooking after my Mother died. "I'll make you a little something later, Nami-san, Dakota-chan." He whispers.

"Thanks." Nami smiles with relief.

"I'm sorry, cooking isn't really what I'm best at… but if there's anything at all, I can help with…!" Apis apologises hanging her head.

"Oh, don't worry about it. It's enough if you're enjoying yourself." I assure her circling my arms around her body, hugging her, she leans back into my body.

"If it's anything to do with food, you can leave it to me. There's a bunch of other stuff you can help with." Sanji tells her, and she nods her head, making a sound of agreement.

"You sure? I love this stuff!" Luffy asks chewing more of Apis' food.

"You would… " Usopp replies, looking at our Captain sceptically.

"You'll get used to it y' know. Just try and eat some." Luffy says, and I shake my head, but everyone eats small bites, but we finish it off and continue sitting in the kitchen as Sanji does the washing up.

"Now that I think of it… Apis, why were you out on the ocean in that rowboat?" I ask her as she sits on my lap, holding onto my arm securely.

"I was running away from a Marine ship…" Apis confesses hanging her head.

"A Marine ship?" Luffy echoes.

"At night, during the storm three days ago." She says, and I look up at Nami with a know-it-all smirk, she shakes her head.

"You were out in the storm in that tiny rowboat? You've been through a lot, huh?" Nami asks her with sympathy.

"Now tell us what you were there for," Zoro asks her, she looks up making a sound of confusion. "The fact that you had to run away means… you weren't riding on that battleship as a guest, right? And the Marines don't waste their time on just anybody."

"Well… I mean…" Apis tries to explain hanging her head.

"What so you're a criminal?" Luffy asks her with no tact.

"Of course not!" Apis snaps, "How could someone like me have done anything wrong!? I didn't do anything, but… I can't really… tell you the reason…"

"What's up with that?" Usopp asks in curiosity and annoyance.

"Just let her alone. She must have her reasons. If she doesn't want to say, you shouldn't ask." Sanji argues, and I squeeze Apis lightly in my arms.

"I guess you're right." I agree, looking down at her with a smile and she looks up smiling back. "But would you at least tell us where you're from?"

"Eh? Sure. I'm from Warship Island!" Apis answers happily, I had heard of the island but never been.

"Warship Island?" I echo looking down at her.

"You know it?" Usopp asks me and turns to Nami.

"Nope, lemme check," Nami says and gets out her map.

"Sort of, never been, never needed to," I reply offhandedly.

"Why do they call it Warship Island?" Luffy asks her.

"They call it that because the silhouette of the island looks just like a battleship," Apis explains.

"Hey, cool!" Luffy exclaims in glee.

"Ah, here it is," Nami exclaims in joy as she points to a small island near the calm belt.

"It's right next to the Grand Line." Usopp points out.

"Right, now we're somewhere over here, so… we're not that far away." Nami says and points to the middle of the ocean.

"What do you wanna do? Wanna go home to Warship Island? We were planning on going straight into the Grand Line but…" I ask her, and she looks down at her hands in her lap.

"Me? You went through the trouble of saving me, and I know it will be a burden but, I want to go home to my island! I'm sorry, that sounds selfish. If you let me get on any ship, we meet along the way. I'll manage somehow." Apis tells us and I stroke her hair, feeling the guilt seeping through her.

"Honestly, you really are trouble! There's no way a pirate ship can go around approaching other ships!" Nami argues seeming stuck up.

"That's true…" Apis agrees, hanging her head again.

"But ya know, the island's not that far out of our way. And it's not like we have to start our journey right away. Guess we have no choice." I tell her, and she looks up at me with a huge smile. "I'm good to go."

"I'm fine either way." Nami agrees, "What do you think, Captain?"

"Heh, it's cool with me." Luffy agrees with a big grin.

"We'll get to the Grand Line soon enough." Usopp agrees also.

"So, ya say the island looks like a battleship?" Luffy asks her.

"And there you have it." Sanji comments.

"Really? You'll really take me back to Warship Island?" Apis asks excitedly and jumps out of my lap, standing at the edge of the table.

"Yup!" Luffy answers her.

"Great! Thank you, Luffy!" Apis cheers as she jumps up and down on the stop waving her arms around. "Yay! Yay! I'm so happy! Thank you so much! Thank you! Everyone, thank you so much! To thank you, I'll make breakfast every day!"

"Oh, please don't…" We tell her, and I pick her up; she hugs me happily.

"Why not?" Luffy asks, and I sigh as Apis bounces on my lap as I hug her back as she beams with happiness.

"We should get moving," Nami says, and we all get up, with Usopp back to the crow's nest.

 **############**

I walk outside with Nami; when she stops in her tracks looking around, I look at her with curiosity. "Oi! There's some ships off the aft bow! Ohmigod! That's a Marine ship!" Usopp announces suddenly, and we all go on alert.

"The Marines!?" Nami shrieks.

"A-and we're not talking about one or two here!" Usopp calls out; I dash to the side of the ship to see at least half a dozen within view.

"You're right. But what is a fleet that size doing here?" I question as Nami, and I look at the vessels not far from us.

"What's going on? What's happening?" Luffy asks as he pops up from behind us. "I bet they've come for mine and Dakota's head!"

"Even so, why that many?" Nami asks, and I have to say that maybe enough for just one of us but two heavyweights?

"They just know about how tough I am to beat! I'm just too strong! I mean Dakota's super strong even without her abilities!" Luffy points out, but he seems too carefree.

"You're too careless!" Nami snaps at our Captain.

"What's wrong?" Sanji asks I look around to see the frightened look on Apis' face.

"Those ships are from the 8th Division. Those are the Marines I ran away from! Oh no…" Apis panics, I walk over to her and sit down on the ground allowing my dress to flow around me as I place Apis on my lap trying to comfort her, she settles slightly and I stroke her hair soothing her when I hear the sounds of cannon fire.

"Ahh! They've started shooting!" Usopp shouts and three cannons come crashing down around the ship; I hold Apis tightly to myself as the ship shakes and everyone braces themselves as the ship settles.

"Attention pirate vessel! Stop your ship immediately! You've had your warning shots; the next round will not miss!" A Marine shouts through the comms at us, and I shake my head, shifting Apis in my lap, keeping her covered.

"Like hell, we're gonna stop!" Usopp snaps as he hangs from the rig by the foot and holds onto the side.

"What do we do, Luffy? If you're gonna fight them, do it now!" Zoro tells him.

"Ya, let's fight." Luffy agrees not even thinking about it.

"H-hey, hold it! Why do you guys always do this!? How do you plan to take on that whole fleet?" Usopp interjects sharing his panic.

"Apis you should get inside," I tell her worried about her getting hurt in the crossfire.

"We'll raid them," Zoro says not even caring.

"What the hell will raiding them do?!" Usopp yells and I let Apis up off of my lap, but she doesn't move and looks over my shoulder up.

"It'll do something!" Luffy jumps in again neither of them really thinking it through.

"WHAT?!" Usopp yells.

"It's not like we're telling you to come. Just shoot the cannon to cover us." Zoro tells him, and he seems to calm down.

"Really?! I get to stay on the ship? Great leave it to me! And just in case we have to get away, I'll be ready to do that too!" Usopp assures them which I have no doubt and I look down to see Apis still hasn't moved back inside.

"Hey Apis, what's wrong?" I ask her as she stares up.

"A wind is coming." Apis states with certainty. "A _big_ wind."

"Zoro, face the sails south! Usopp, Sanji-kun, turn us hard to starboard! NOW!" Nami instructs them, and they seem a little hesitant.

"O-okay…!" Usopp agrees along with Sanji, and they walk back into the cabin to the helm.

"What's up?" Luffy asks our navigator.

"A squall is coming." Nami answers, "We'll catch it and get away. There's no way we could take them head on with what we have."

"We'd be fine…" Luffy pouts wanting to fight, and the wind comes out of nowhere and catches in the sails just in time, and we speed off, but then I look around and feel a tingling in the back of my neck. That can't be good. "Hey! We're going pretty fast! This winds fun."

"Check it out, Luffy, we're losing the Marines! Haha, just try and catch us now~!" Usopp cheers but I still have that bad feeling, and I pick Apis up into my arms holding her so she leans on my hip and she hugs my neck. I walk over to Zoro as he looks around. "Those Marines can't follow us now! Another victory for the great Captain Usopp!"

"Awesome! Cool! That's my navigator!" Luffy cheers.

"Nami-san is so wonderful~! She can even predict the winds~!" Sanji swoons at her, and I shake my head seeing Zoro look up, I follow and see all the seagulls staying on the crow's nest, bad sign.

"Well, I just had a feeling." She replies.

"Ah~ Nami-san is splendid when she's humble~!" Sanji swoons some more.

"So let's get going to Warship Island," Luffy exclaims in glee.

"You mean it!" Apis cheers, right in my ear, I cringe, and she whispers an apology, but I smile at her glad that she's happy.

"Of course, I mean it!" Luffy tells her.

"Alright, to Warship Island!" Usopp cheers.

"GO!" They both shout though Apis whispers.

"What's wrong, Zoro, Dakota?" Nami asks us from next to me. "You've been looking real serious for awhile now."

"Nah, it's just something weird," Zoro comments still looking up.

"What?" She asks.

"It seems like… the ship hasn't moved for a long time." Zoro says, and everything clicks into place.

"Come to think of it… there isn't any wind in the sails at all…" Nami says, and it dawns on her too as she lets out a shriek causing everyone to look at her.

"What's up, Nami?" Luffy asks our panicking navigator.

"Nami… san?" Sanji asks looking confused,

"Oh no…" Nami mutters.  
"Yep," I pop the 'p', and she lets out another shriek of panic, gaining everyone's attention, they all look up at her. "We've entered the Calm Belt."

"Charm Belt?" Usopp asks, getting the name wrong.

"What the heck is that?" Luffy asks.

"Calm Belt! A region of calm water!" Nami snaps at him not remaining calm.

"Nami's superhuman strength?!" He exclaims in glee not getting it at all.

"IDIOT!" Nami yells at him, and the ship shakes slightly, I pull Apis closer to me.

"Eh? An earthquake?" He asks completely oblivious.

"Earthquake? On the ocean?" Sanji questions looking at our Captain in disbelief.

"You guys, stop talking like we're fine! Hurry! Take in the sails and start rowing! Get us back to where we were!" Nami instructs them with urgency.

"Right away, Nami-san!" Sanji immediately agrees.

"What are you so worked up for? Why do we need to row? This is a sailing ship." Zoro says, and I look behind me as he stands there utterly oblivious to our situation.

"Yeah, he's right! Why would we go back there when we just ran away from the Marines?" Usopp asks, and I lose it.

"Would you just listen to us! We're in real deep trouble here!" I snap at the boys.

"But the sea so quiet." Luffy points out, and Usopp nods in agreement.

"Fine! I'll explain it to you! Listen! We took the ship out of there in a hurry, and we ended up a lot farther south of where we're going." I try to explain without worrying Apis of the danger of this place.

"So we're in the Grand Line?" Luffy asks, and Usopp begins celebrating.

"IF IT WAS THAT EASY TO GET INTO, EVERYONE WOULD GO!" Nami shouts at them aggressively and pulls out the map for everyone to see. "Now look! Our destination, The Grand Line, runs between two strips of ocean, okay? Both of these regions are called the 'Calm Belt'. No one knows why, but these regions never have winds or ocean currents. It's quite simply a permanently 'calm' region. For ships that depend on wind power, it's an extremely dangerous place to travel! Luffy? Do you understand?" Nami long winded her explanation.

"Yeah. just that it's bad." Luffy answers.

"Yes, that's right. I'm glad you got it." I remark, and I let Apis down on her feet.

"So when the old fart said it was dangerous, is this what he meant...?" Sanji wonders, but he's not far off.

"That's why there hasn't been any wind." Zoro finally gets it.

"Well, if the ship won't move, there isn't much we can do, right?" Usopp asks.

"We'll just wait until the wind starts up again!" Luffy suggests the impossible.

"Like I said! Once you enter this region, there won't be any wind no matter how long you wait! And that isn't all… there's another reason why this region is known to be so dangerous. This place is…" Nami says, and the ship shakes again, I place my hands on Apis' shoulders to keep her steady.

"What's going on?" Usopp questions as the ship continue to shake.

"Something's coming!" Apis shouts and the water around us waves as something big comes to the surface, the ship moves up into the air, with more mounds of water shooting all around us.

"They're here!" I shout as more pop up around us.

"What's that?" Luffy asks, and the waterfalls away revealing giant Sea Kings of all kinds, we move up as we're on one of their snouts. "Wow! They're huge! HUGE!" He shouts, and I pull Apis towards me as the others all look entirely in shock and horror at the school of Sea Kings.

"The Calm Belt is a Sea King breeding ground. And for the _big_ ones, too… the reason you can't cross the Calm Belt because of these things." I explain remaining calm, unlike the others as Nami hugs the mast with tears running down her face.

"What are we supposed to do now?" Sanji asks in worry.

"For now, everyone… don't move! We'll be back in the water soon. And then.., we're gonna row like hell!" Zoro says in a hush-like tone.

"YOU'RE KIDDING ME!" Usopp yells in fear and Nami covers his mouth, stopping his screams.

"Idiot…!" Nami mutters, and it seems to get the Sea King's attention.

"Why~!" Usopp mutters, and the frog Sea King hops towards us.

"THE FROG'S COMING!" Luffy screams as it gets closer.

"W-why… w-what the?!" Usopp cries and Apis slips from my grasp; she falls towards the open mouth of the Sea King.

"Apis!" I shout as I hang onto the mast as the ship tilts.

"Look out!" Luffy shouts and stretches his arm out catching Apis before the Sea King can swallow her, and falls back into the water and Apis hangs in the air, Luffy swings her high up, and she panics.

"His arm's stretching! Luffy, have you eaten a Devil's Fruit?" She shouts down as Luffy's arm begins to spring back.

"Yup." He answers.

"Luffy! Stretch down to the bottom again!" She shouts, and he complies, she goes soaring towards the Sea King we're standing on.

"Oi, oi Luffy!" Usopp shouts at him.

"What the hell are you doing?!" I demand with worry for Apis.

"I dunno." Luffy answers and I move over to the side to watch Apis moving towards the Sea King.

"Apis!" Nami yells out.

"Watch out!" Usopp also yells out.

"Okay, now…" Apis yells, and I watch her moving towards the nostril of the Sea King and pulls out a hair from inside.

"What did she do?!" Zoro asks.

"Pulled out a nose hair," Luffy answers as the Sea King makes noises as it gets ready to sneeze.

"Wait a damn second~" Usopp freaks out.

"If you do that…" Nami panics.

"The thing's gonna sneeze!" Sanji yells and Apis comes sailing towards us, she falls into Zoro's arms who falls back a little from the force, and she lets go of the nose hair.

"That's a HUGE nose hair!" Luffy exclaims, and Apis in Zoro's arms gives him a thumbs up. "Alright! Here we go!" With that said, the Sea King sneezes loudly and violently; we go flying into the air.

"WHAT!?" We all shout as the air as the ship bumps away from the school of Sea Kings. "HOW CAN YOU BE SO CAREFREE ABOUT THIS?!" We shout at our Captain.

"AWESOME! It feels like we're flying!" Luffy cheers from the air.

"We really _are_ flying!" Usopp shouts as we continue to soar over the school of Sea Kings and land harshly back into the water.

"Looks like we're back to where we were before." Nami sighs in relief.

"And no sign of those Marines." Zoro points out.

"I thought I was gonna die…" Usopp whines looking green in the face.

"Right on!" Luffy exclaims to Apis.

"Thanks!" She replies with a thumbs up.

"Alright full sail! Our heading? Of course! Warship Island!" Luffy exclaims, and I turn the helm, and the sails catch the wind, and we head off.

 **############**

We sail into some fog sometime later, "Can't see a damn thing." Usopp comments.

"You can see the fog~!" Luffy teases him.

"Apis, are you sure it's around here?" Sanji asks her.

"Dunno." She answers, and I don't blame her, she only a kid.

"How can you say 'Dunno'?" Usopp asks her in annoyance; I elbow him in the stomach, he bends over wincing in pain.

"It should be somewhere nearby…" Nami says trying to be assuring.

"You're so great, Nami-san!" Sanji swoons at her.

"I don't really get you…" Luffy says to Sanji, but Apis moves forward over the railing.

"Oh… over there!" Apis shouts and points to the right of us, and I try to look through the thick fog and in the distance, a silhouette of something big comes into view.

"Ooh, a ship! It's HUGE!" Luffy exclaims getting all excited.

"Come on now…" Sanji sighs to himself.

"Is there anything you won't call huge?" Zoro asks him.

"So, should I say that it's super-duper huge?" Luffy asks as if that's the problem.

"NO!" Nami yells at him.

"That's Warship Island! It looks like a battleship, so we call it Warship Island" Apis explains with glee.

"Hey, cool!" Luffy exclaims as we sail into the port, I turn the helm to the side, the ship moves on its side towards land, Zoro pulls the anchor loose and drops it into the bay, Sanji gets the Jacob's ladder and unrolls it as Apis stands at the top.

"Yo! I'm back!" Apis greets them, and they all seem both happy and surprised to see her again, I pick her up, and we both climb down the ladder onto the ground.

 **############**

Once on the ground Apis waves at the villagers and her friends. "Apis!?" They all exclaim in surprise at her reappearance.

"Why did you… on a pirate ship…? What's going on here?" A villager asks her as the others all climb down behind us.

"Hey, you there," Luffy asks seeming serious.

"W-what do you want?" The villager asks in fear shielding himself from an attack.

"Is there a smoked meat store on this island!?" Luffy asks, and I shake my head with Apis giggling to herself.

"W-who are these guys...?" The villager questions seeming sceptical.

"Well, you see… even though their pirates, they're _good_ pirates." Apis explains.

"Is there even such a thing as a good pirate?" Another villager questions.

"But weren't you taken away by the Marines?" Asks the one next to the other.

"That's right. But I ran away! Then… Luffy and his crew saved me, right?" Apis explains and circles her arms around my neck as Luffy stands next to me.

"Yup!" Luffy agrees.

"Apis, what have you done? I don't know why, but the Marines were looking for you. You shouldn't go back to your house. They're still around here." The villagers explain, frightening the poor girl.

"Oh no…" Apis mutters and hides her face in the crook of my neck; I rub her back, trying to comfort her.

"We'd like to help you out, but… these guys are pirate!" A villager explains.

"Ah, what a fix…" Apis mumbles to herself.

"But she said we're GOOD pirates," Usopp mutters trying to defend both Apis and us.

"Apis! Come here this instant." An old man tells her, and she seems shocked and happy about the appearance of this old man.

"Who's that?" I ask her, but the others hear me.

"Dunno." Luffy answers, I look over at him with a frown and Apis jumps from my arms and breaks into a run towards the old man.

"Grandpa Bokuden!" Apis greets him as she runs over to him she attacks him in a hug around the waist.

"I'm glad you're safe. I thank you for saving Apis. How about it? I'd like to give you a warm welcome at my house." He asks us.

"Is your house… a smoked meat store?" Luffy asks I elbow him in the back and he yelps in pain.

"It's not a smoked meat store, but… Grandpa Bokuden makes the best pork buns on the island!" Apis boasts, and that's all Luffy needs.

"Yes! Let's do it!" Luffy agrees loudly.

"Sure, let's go." Zoro also agrees.

"Apis, please introduce your friends." Grandpa Bokuden asks her, and she pulls away, pointing at Zoro.

"This is Zoro, Sanji, Usopp, Nami, and Dakota!" She introduces us as she points at us, and we all give a form of greeting.

"Very nice to meet you all; let us head back to our home." He says, and Apis moves to his side, and they walk through the group of villagers along with us walking behind them.

 **############**

We made it to the house; it's a nice wooden cabin and a stone hut at the back which we sit in waiting for the pork buns as Grandpa Bokuden puts them in to cook. "All set. Everything is prepared, now we just have to wait." He announces.

"Wow!"

"Smells good!" Luffy and Usopp exclaim in greed.

"Oh, this is old fashioned. Gramps, how long's this gonna take?" Sanji asks from over the ancient stove.

"Hmm? Oh, yes… about 4 or 5 hours, I'd guess." He answers and Luffy and Usopp yell out in surprise, but I settle them down.

 **############**

Everyone sits around the cabin; I sit by the window next to Luffy as my assassination instincts are in overdrive as something doesn't sit right with me. "I'm so hungry.~" Luffy whines as he looks out the window at a butterfly that flutters past.

"Bokuden-san, why was Apis kidnapped by the Marines? Any ideas?" Nami asks him also curious.

"Apis, do you have any idea?" He asks seemingly clueless as the rest of us.

"None!" Apis answers all too quickly and I look at her, she does know but is unwilling to share.

"But you told us there was a reason you couldn't say anything!" Nami argues.

"Oh, that was a lie." Apis replies and I shake my head at her antics.

"Well… there is something." Bokuden adds in.

"But she just said there wasn't!" Usopp snaps slamming his hands on the coffee table.

"There really isn't much on this island, but if there's something it does have, it's our… ancient legend." Bokuden remarks.

"Legend?" Zoro echoes in surprise.

"The people of this island are known as the descendants of Lost Island that sank thousands of years ago at the peak of its prosperity. Lost Island is home to dragons called Millenium Dragons. The bones of those dragons are called Dragon Bones… and are believed to be an elixir that grants eternal youth." Bokuden tells the tale.

"Interesting…" Sanji comments as he puts a cigarette to his mouth. "But the legend is no reason for the Marines to get involved."

"Yeah. where do the Marines fit in?" Usopp asks the important question.

"That's something I don't get either." I join in from my seat.

"Shouldn't there be some sort of hint in the legend?" Zoro asks, and I think back to what Bokuden had already said, 'an elixir that grants eternal youth'?

"To begin, Lost Island's first king was Iskandaq…" Bokuden begins.

"There he goes," Apis mutters under her breath in annoyance, obviously hearing it before.

"Now, Pokepo soon had three sons. The eldest was Bokehontasu. The second son was Bokebonbon. And the third son was Bokebokepon." Bokuden continues, and Apis sneaks right past Luffy and me, we look at her, and she motions for us to stay quiet and I listen to the legend told in boring details. "One day the king told them this: 'Listen you three, go find the tree that bears stars as its fruit in the Valley of Dragons.' and so, Bokehontasu, and Bokebokepon bravely set off to find the Valley… and then, in the 317th Generation, Igrimori III's son Yugirmori became a great ruler. He went on to have 18 children. Those 18 children... " Bokuden continues it's been a long time since he started and of course Zoro is fast asleep along with Luffy, the two having no attention span, Nami and Usopp complain, but I keep listening not wanting to be totally rude. "As King, he implemented a great revolution. But that King _sure_ had a lot of children! By the time his grandchildren were born, he ended up with 65!" Luffy excuses himself getting up sluggishly leaving the cabin. "They said if you threw a rock into the kingdom, you'd hit one of the princes, hehe." I watch as Luffy leave moving towards the hut, but I continue to listen even though I really don't see how this is a legend. "And then, in the 1111th generation, no it was the 1121st generation, it was Hokeehontasu. Thereupon, Nemenmetasu entered the Civil Service and began to think 'How shall I protect this man?' then!" Nami crawls past Usopp's back and stops as they talk, something about Luffy and continues crawling out of the cabin. "Before the other countries could invade, he ordered for the preparation of the kingdom to commence." I hear Nami shriek and get up from my seat by the window; I sneak outside unnoticed by the others.

 **############**

I walk outside towards the hut to see Luffy standing behind a crouching Nami as they both look at the ground, I walk over to see drag marks on the ground, indicating something heavy was being dragged. "Where's it go?" Nami questions and looks up, she looks right at me.

"I guess we follow it," I tell her and she nods in agreement, she gets to her feet, and we walk around the hut following the trail around the back of the hut to the mountain area and some bushes.

"It just disappears?" Luffy questions as we look at the mountain.

"What's going on?" Nami wonders and Luffy walks over to the bush kneeling down before sticking his head in.

"Hey, Luffy what are you doing?" I ask him.

"A hole." He replies and Nami, and I get onto our knees beside him and see the drag mark continues towards a dark hole in the rock face and we crawl through the bushes towards the hole.

 **############**

We crawl through the cramped, dark hole through the mountain face and out the other side to a hidden path going up the side of the mountain, and we begin to trek up the path to the top where the drag marks jump onto the other side of a cavern. "It seems it got across here somehow." Nami points out. "Luffy!"

"Okay. **Gomu Gomu no suspension bridge."** Luffy yells and stretches his arms out to the other side of the gap, which makes his legs stretch and Nami, and I walk over him to the other side and walk down further.

 **############**

We continue through the trees still following the drag marks on the ground. "We're behind the mountain. Where's it going?" I wonder aloud.

"Ah… what's that?" Nami inquiries as in front of us is a cave, and we walk towards the cave and inside.

 **############**

We walk further into the cave the sound of Apis' voice grows closer, "I'm trying hard to find out, but I still don't have any clues." Apis says to someone out of view.

"Apis… who is she talking to?" I wonder, and Luffy steps forward waving his arm in the air.

"Yo, Apis! Who ya talkin' to?" Luffy asks her loudly.

"Don't shout out suddenly like that!" Nami scolds him, and Apis sets to her feet and backs away arms stretching out as if trying to use herself as a barrier between us and something worth protecting.

"No, stay back!" Apis shouts and Luffy walks over as Nami, and I stay back when he looks in shock gasping.

"Luffy, what's up?" I ask as we walk forward to get a better look, I stare at the figure in front of us as Nami gasps in shock, and I can't help but stare with my mouth hanging open as in front of us is a dragon. My shock changes into that of excitement at the sight of this rare creature but Luffy decides to try climbing it, and Apis tries stopping him.

"Cool! This is so cool!" Luffy exclaims in pure joy.

"Stop! Please stop!" Apis pleads with him, and I step forward slowly, not wanting to startle the dragon.

"Wait, Luffy!" Nami gasps and I walk over to Luffy, pulling him from the head of the Dragon as he leans into it and Apis tries pulling him off.

"It's real! It's alive!" Luffy gushes.

"Stop it! Leave him alone!" Apis yells at him as I pull him off by the back of his vest.

"Awesome! Where'd you come from?" Luffy asks the dragon, and in response, it opens his eye staring into Luffy's and for a long moment, they stare at each other. "I see… you want to go back to your home." Apis gasps in shock, stepping back and I drop Luffy to his feet, and he crouches down in front of the dragon.

"Ryuuji says it's okay to be friends with you Luffy. He knows you're a good person." Apis says, and I step over placing my hand on Apis' shoulder, she looks over at Luffy as he smiles. "Luffy, how did you understand Ryuuji?"

"Just somehow." He answers and I shake my head in disbelief.

"Somehow?" Apis echoes more in annoyance in his answer than anything.

"You can understand him too, huh?" Luffy asks her.

"No… actually… I…" Apis tries to say, but I know already.

"Could it be a Devil's Fruit? You have the ability of the Devil's Fruit, don't you?" I ask her, and she nods her head in agreement holding onto my hand still on her shoulder.

"Yes, I ate the Hiso Hiso Fruit. After that, I could understand the heart of any animal." Apis explains her abilities.

"So that's why back then you knew that strong wind was coming." Nami points out.

"Yep! The seagulls told me. Meeting Ryuuji was also thanks to the Hiso Hiso Fruit…" Apis says, and she begins explaining how she met the ancient dragon one day on the island. "Ryuuji had lost all of his strength and had gotten separated from his friends. He was searching all alone for the location of the Dragon's Nest, Lost Island."

"Lost Island? The island that sank thousands of years ago?" Nami asks, still keeping her distance.

"Ryuuji says the island is going to rise again. 'It should be about time,' he says, but he doesn't remember the location anymore. He's lost all his strength and the ability to fly, but he keeps saying 'I want to go home!' I want to do something to help, but I have no idea where the island is. That old legend didn't have any clues… so I accidentally asked some Marines passing by the island. But that was a mistake. They were looking for the Dragon Bones." Apis explains some more.

"Dragon Bones? The ones that grant eternal youth? They kidnapped you because they were after those, Apis?" I ask her.

"Yes, they told me that I had to tell them everything and kidnapped me. Probably because I was wearing the claw pendant Ryuuji gave me." She replies.

"So that's why you were out in the storm. You're pushing yourself too far!" I scold her, and she nods her head, agreeing with me.

"I know, that's why I'm keeping it a secret from the villagers and Bokuden-san. I can't burden them with this. But, I want to get Ryuuji back to his birthplace no matter what! Ryuuji, you always say that, right? If you return to the Dragon's Nest, you'll surely regain your strength. No matter how long it takes, I'll find it for you. Absolutely, no matter what happens. I'll find it for you." Apis says with so much emotion, I crouch down and circle my arms around her neck in a hug feeling her strong emotions.

"Yosh! Then I'll take you there!" Luffy announces with no hesitation.

"Luffy!? Were you listening? She said Lost Island sunk into the sea!" Nami snaps at him.

"But the Legendary Millennium Dragon said so! This Lost Island has to be somewhere!" Luffy argues lightly.

"An island that isn't on any map?" Nami questions him.

"Yeah! That's why we're going!" Luffy announces with complete optimism.

"To an island that isn't on any map. Well if you say so. Let's do it!" Nami changes her tune, snapping her fingers with a grin.

"Yosh! Dakota coming?" Luffy asks, and I look at Apis and Ryuuji.

"Of course." I agree.

"Really? You really mean it?!" Apis asks, turning around within my arms.

"Yeah!" Luffy confirms and Apis hugs me back.

"Thank you!" She exclaims in pure happiness.

"Now that that's decided have some more!" Luffy says picking up a pork bun from the ground and holds it up to Ryuuji.

"Ah, Luffy, I forgot to tell you before but…" Apis tries to warm him but before she can Ryuuji opens his mouth, taking half of Luffy into his mouth, leaving just his legs kicking about. "Ryuuji's a little bit senile." Nami stands in shock, but I can't help but laugh as I watch my baby Brother try to wiggle out of the Millennium Dragon's mouth.


	16. The Grand Line Can Wait: Part 2

**THE GRAND LINE CAN WAIT: PART 2**

 **Dakota's POV:**

Nami stands in shock, but I can't help but laugh as I watch my baby Brother try to wiggle out of the Millennium Dragon's mouth, I pull Luffy free from Ryuuji's mouth now covered in slime. "We need to head back to the others." I point out, and the others agree, "We'll be back soon, Ryuuji." I whisper taking Apis' hand in mine, leading us to the mouth of the cave. "Stay here with Ryuuji, okay Apis?" I ask her, and she nods her head.

"I will be careful, Dakota." She says, and I nod my head before joining Luffy and Nami as we walk down the mountain the way we came.

Once back at the cabin, inside Bokuden is still reciting the lengthy legend in his sleep and everyone else is lying around snoozing. "Hey! Guys! You gotta see this! What happened?" Luffy exclaims as he jumps into the room and walks over to Usopp snoring on the coffee table.

"Incredible. He's still talking." Nami complains, with her arms folded over her chest, I shake my head also in disbelief at the old man.

"Oi, you gotta hear this," Luffy says and pops Usopp's snot bubble, startling the sniper awake with a yell.

"Okay, I'm up!" He gives a yell which seems to wake Zoro up, and I walk over to him, sitting in his lap as he wakes up.

"What? Morning already? Dakota!" Zoro says and does a double-take as he notices me on his lap, and I lie back over his lap as he stretches.

"Morning," I greet him, he looks down at me with a blush on his cheeks and I push my legs up into the air and roll back onto my knees next to Zoro who seems even more flustered and I look around the room to see Sanji with blood leaking from his nose, Usopp with a blush and even Nami though Luffy isn't looking my way. "What?" I ask no sure what the problem was.

"You just flashed us!" Nami scolds me, and I shrug my shoulders with a giggle.

"Hope you enjoyed the show." I laugh getting to my feet when the door swings open, revealing a very flustered villager standing in the doorway breathing heavily.

"B-big trouble!" He yells as he steps inside. "Bokuden-san! Where's Apis!?"

"What's wrong?" I ask him, getting to my feet.

"You're a pirate, right? There's a Marine fleet anchoring in the bay right now!" He informs us, and it's not good for us

"They couldn't be… still, after Apis?" Nami wonders, and we all know it's the only option of the Marines to return to the island.

"What is with this kid?" Usopp complains.

"Hey, everyone come with me!" Nami orders us, and Sanji jumps to his feet quickly.

"Yes, Nami-san!" Sanji swoons for her.

"Why?" Luffy asks.

"Just come on!" Nami snaps at him.

"What about Gramps over there?" Zoro asks, gesturing over to the snoozing elder.

"Um… we'll let him rest here for now. Hey, if Bokuden-san wakes up, tell him this: 'we're going to protect Apis.'" I tell him as I walk over to Nami.

"O-okay." He agrees, and we leave out the back of the cabin.

We all stand within the cave with Ryuuji still lying down on the bed of straw with Apis on his back, and everyone stands in awe at the Millennium Dragon in front of us, and she comes into view. "Hey, everyone!" She greets us with a smile.

"Just like Gramp Bokuden said, the legendary Millennium Dragon," Nami states to the others.

"Yeah! Isn't it cool!?" Luffy beams next to her.

"It's not like he's yours!" Nami scolds him disapprovingly.

"So when you get closer to the Grand Line, you see things like this?" Zoro wonders, and he's not wrong, wait till we get there.

"Well we saw those Sea Kings before, but this isn't one of those…" Sanji replies as they look at Ryuuji.

"Scared, Zoro?" I tease him; he snaps his head, looking right at me with a glare, "Come on, take a joke. Swordsman." I tease him some more.

"Are… are you sure it's tame?" Usopp asks in fear when Ryuuji moves his head towards him, bending his nose slightly before licking his face as if tasting him.

"Oh! Sometimes he gets a bit senile! If he thinks you're food, he'll try to eat you!" Apis warns him, but still, Ryuuji bites down on Usopp's head, trapping him.

"Too late…!" Usopp cries in fear of being eaten by the dragon.

"It doesn't hurt at all, right?" Luffy laughs at our friend's misfortune. "You look like a trout!"

"A-a-are you just going to stand there? Get me out!" Usopp yells trying to pry himself free of the dragon's grip.

"Let's just let him eat him," Zoro says, and I stand next to him, but he's refusing to look at him for my earlier teasing.

"Zoro...~" Usopp cries, and Luffy lets out a laugh watching our friend struggle.

"You better not, he'll give you food poisoning." Sanji taunts him.

"Shut up, Love Cook!" Usopp snaps at him, having enough I walk over to Ryuuji and pet him on the side of the head, he releases the terrified Usopp who runs away hiding behind a rock.

"That's better; you don't wanna eat him, he'll make you ill." I whisper-yell to Ryuuji, and I know the others heard me as Luffy lets out a laugh and a yell of protest from the cowering Usopp. Apis jumps down from Ryuuji's back, towards me and I catch her before settling her down on the ground, and she stands on the other side of Ryuuji's head looking solemn, and everyone else but Nami and I sit down around the cave.

"What the Marines want is… this Millennium Dragon. The truth is, after thinking. It over… is that we've decided to take the Millennium Dragon back to Lost Island." Nami explains to the boys.

Y-you can't be serious! The Marines are closing in! It was hard enough getting away just by ourselves, but with something that big…" Usopp begins to protest in his usual fear-stricken way.

"Ryuuji… really wants to go home! So…" Apis exclaims silencing him for a moment.

"And I bet Luffy said 'Sure! I'll take you back home!' or made some other stupid promises…" Usopp remarks making a funny voice.

"Yeah! I promised we'd taken him there." Luffy answers with a goofy grin, Usopp stands up with a long groan.

"But we don't have any idea where that island is! How're we supposed to get there!?" Usopp asks in almost outrage.

"Things'll work out," Luffy replies.

"No, they won't." Usopp cries out, trying to reason with our Captain.

"I think if Ryuuji returns to his birthplace, he'll get better," Apis explains as he strokes his snout lovingly.

"Animals have instincts. This Millennium Dragon may be able to tell us something." I tell the others.

"Yeah, let's find this Lost Island!" Luffy says.

"But how…" Usopp begins to ask.

"Well, it'll work out somehow," Zoro comments from his seat by Sanji who lights his cigarette.

"Zoro...~" Usopp groans at our First Mate.

"But what should we do with him? Just taking him down the mountain alone will attract attention." Sanji points out, and Nami smirks as a response.

"First, we'll need a cart. One big enough for Ryuuji to ride on." Nami says, and Usopp lets out another groan slapping a hand to his forehead as he looks up.

"Let's do it!" Apis exclaims happily, jumping over to me, I pick her up into my arms as she circles her arms around my neck.

Once outside of the cave on the side with the number of trees. I set Apis down on the ground by Usopp and Nami. "Sanji, Luffy, Dakota and Zoro you four will cut down as many trees as possible," Nami instructs us, and we nod before walking off in different directions.

" **Akuma-Akuma no Weapon of Alastor: Axe,"** I say and in my right hand, a long staff with a dark grey axe head morphs, I place my left hand below my right and swing violently, " **100 Executions!"** I shout as a large air force, sweeps through the forest, cutting into the trees before me, they all fall to the ground, I bring my pile of wood with the others, I lie on top of the collection between Luffy and Zoro's.

"This enough?" Luffy asks as if it wasn't obvious.

"Okay!" Nami agrees with a gesture though Usopp and Apis look in shock.

"Guess I've got no choice but to help now. You conniving girl." Usopp complains, looking over at Nami with a sour look on his face.

We finally get the cart almost finished though Luffy keeps wasting time, with Usopp doing most of the work and he puts on the last wheel. "That should do it," Usopp announces wiping away some sweat from his forehead, Apis and Luffy climb up on the chart and just around.

"This should be perfect for Ryuuji to ride on!" Apis cheers.

"For sure!" Luffy agrees with a laugh.

"But the Marines are still anchored in the harbour. What about our ship?" Sanji asks a good question.

"Something will happen," Luffy replies.

"No, it won't," Sanji points out.

"We can fight them," Zoro suggests.

"That suits me just fine." Sanji agrees with him for once.

"No, we can't. It'll put Ryuuji in danger. Let Dakota think about how to transport him." Nami says, and they all look over at me as I stand at the front of the cart.

"But, of course, the Going Merry is still anchored in the harbour…" I ponder and go quiet as I think of our escape from the Marines and off this island.

"Yosh! That's the precious ship we got from Kaya. I'll go get it." Usopp declares seeming almost brave.

"That's so cool!" Apis exclaims.

"However... " Usopp cuts in his fake bravery exposing the cowered behind it. "Zoro comes too."

"Why me?" Zoro asks him confused, but I guess he is more the muscles of the crew.

"Then. I'll leave it to you." Nami agrees with ni protest.

"Now that that's settled… how about we wait until nightfall?" Usopp suggests and I look over the side of the cliff, and an idea strikes me.

"No!" Luffy protests and I clear my throat gaining everyone's attention.

"Bring the ship around to that cape that looks like Usopp's nose," I tell them pointing to, and everyone walks over joining me, Luffy lets out a laugh as he crouches down getting a better look.

"Hey, you're right! It's Usopp's nose!" Luffy agrees with a grin.

"But what will you do? If we only bring the ship…" Usopp points out.

"Don't worry." I tell him, "I don't think they'll be able to find us here right away. Just be sure to hurry."

"Ohh, so now we have to _hurry_ …" Usopp begins complaining.

"Sanji-Kun and Luffy, get Ryuuji on the cart." Nami orders the boys.

"Okay!"

"Right away, Nami-san!" Sanji and Luffy reply and they walk into the cave and Usopp, and Zoro walk off, I jog over stopping Zoro by placing my hand on his shoulder, he turns around.

"Be careful; the Marines will be searching the whole island for us." I want him, and he nods. "Good luck." He walks off with Usopp back down the mountain, and I walk over to the cave.

Inside the cave, is see Luffy and Sanji trying to move Ryuuji but keep failing, I let out a giggle at their attempts and they stop, looking over as I stand there. " **Akuma-Akuma no Telekinesis,"** I mutter, and my eyes turn completely white as I hold out my hand towards Ryuuji, he gently lifts off of the ground and hovers in the air and slowly move him and myself towards the exit.

Outside I gently place Ryuuji onto the cart, Apis looks in shock and Nami keeps an eye out for the ship, "There they are!" She announces when a seagull perches on top of Ryuuji's s head cawing at Apis who turns around in shock at whatever it's telling her.

"Oh, no! The Marines are coming up the mountain!" Apis panics clutching her head and I pull her into my arms trying to calm her down; I move over to the side to see the Marines approaching.

"Ahh… there're earlier than I expected." Nami complains.

"But what are we going to do?" Apis asks her urgently.

"Relax, alright. We still have these three." Nami soothes her.

"When the Going Merry gets in front of the Usopp-nose cape, we'll move out!" I tell her, and the Marines come right into view, and this is when Ryuuji decides to move his head and exhale from his nose freaking out the Marines. I hear the Marines' footsteps come closer trying to be sneaky as they hide and ready their rifles, but I hear the click and so does Apis as she jumps in front of Ryuuji.

"No! Leave Ryuuji alone!" Apis shouts as she tries shielding him.

"Apis!" Nami and I shout out to her as a warning, when Ryuuji moves his wing to shield her also.]

"Ryuuji!" She exclaims, and he raises his head high frightening the Marines, and I pull Apis behind me as I look down, seeing someone I recognise from m past behind the Marines superior.

"Fire!" The Marine superior orders and they ready all their guns with no hesitation.

"NO!" Apis screams as she jumps out of my arms to shield Ryuuji, but I pull her back behind Ryuuji's wings and shield her with my body as they open fire and Luffy jumps in front taking the bullets.

"NO GOOD!" Luffy shouts as he expels all of the bullets out, they fling everywhere frightening the Marine soldiers.

"How did he…"

"He just… the bullets…" The Marine soldiers freak out.

"So you have an ability of the Devil's Fruit." Erik states.

"You got it. I'm a rubber man." Luffy replies with no hesitation.

"Rubber, man?"

"D-Devil's Fruit?"

"What's he talking about?" The Marines question in fear.

"Swo-" The Captain begins, but Erik cuts him off.

"Use your swords! Gun's won't affect rubber!" With that said the Marines unsheath their swords and run towards Luffy.

"Sanji-Kun!" Nami shouts out and moves towards Apis and me, as I get to my feet she takes my place.

"Yes, Nami-san!" Sanji yells as he runs over to the approaching Marines and kicks them down.

" **Gomu Gomu no Gatling!"** Luffy yells as he punches the other Marines, knocking them to the ground.

" **Akuma Akuma no Instruments of Death!"** I shout, and two gloves form on my hands, gold with long claws at the end, I rush towards the remaining Marines and cut them down but not enough to kill them instantly, they go down too smoothly and I stand next to Luffy as a Marine soldier looks up at us in fear and lets out a shriek.

"So much for the Marines. If you want something done right…" Erik mumbles under his breath as he walks towards us slowly when a Marine soldier stumbles to their feet and walks towards Erik, who uses his Devil's Fruit ability to slice the Marine.

"What's that?" Luffy questions as we watch.

"A knife?" Sanji wonders and I shake my head.

"Not quite," I answer as Erik stops in his steps still some distance from us.

"My name is Erik the Whirlwind. A mercenary under the employ of Nelson Royale. I have no interest in you lowlife pirates. My only concern is that Millennium Dragon behind you. If you oppose me, you will taste the power of the Kama Kama Fruit from Erik the Whirlwind Scythe." Erik introduces himself to the others; I already know him all too well.

"What's he mean by 'Kama Kama'?" Sanji wonders.

"You see, I too have the abilities of a Devil's Fruit." Erik continues talking.

"Okama?" Luffy mishears.

"Now what?" Sanji asks.

"Nami!" Luffy calls out to her as he turns towards her. "Aren't you ready yet?"

"Almost!" Nami replies.

"Being able to see the ocean from so far away, Nami-san is so wonderful~!" Sanji swoons at her.

"Well, just hurry up," Luffy complains.

"Oi! You riffraff! Are you listening to me!?" Erik yells in anger.

"It's Erik the Okama, right? I heard you." Luffy replies which anger Erik more.

"NOO! Not the 'Kama' in 'Okama'! The 'Kama Kama' as in 'Whirlwind Scythe!" Erik shouts.

"Well, I don't care either way. Just kidding!" Luffy laughs, antagonising Erik.

"You will regret angering me. **Kama-Kama no-"** Erik begins and blows into his middle and forefinger, " **Whirlwind!"** He slashes both his arms in front of him and slashes of air fly towards us, cutting into us and the ground behind us but it loses it's force as the wind travels towards the others.

"What the?!" Luffy clutches at his offending arm.

"I got it. He means 'Whirlwind Scythe'." Sanji replies, holding his bloody forearm.

"The wind I create is as sharp as a blade. Tearing a person limb from limb is child's play. Wouldn't you agree, Le Roux?" Erik asks in a taunting tone.

"Are they there yet?" Apis asks, and I hear the fear in her voice.

"No, not yet." Nami answers and I narrow my eyes at Erik.

"Now, step aside." He orders but I stand my ground. "Hand over the Millennium Dragon."

"Like hell!" I snap at him feeling my blood dripping down onto the ground from my thigh.

"My Kama-Kama no Whirlwind… want another?" Erik teases us as he lifts his hand.

"Can we go now, Nami-san?" Apis asks her.

"Yes! They're set! We're leaving! Sanji-Kun, Luffy, Dakota!" Nami shouts down to us.

"Yes, Nami-swan~!" Sanji shouts back, and we run back up the side back to the cart. "We'll be right there!" Luffy and I jump onto the cart as Sanji goes to the back, ready to push off. "Nami-san, my catapult of love~!" He kicks into the side of the mountain, the force kicks us off to the bottom of the mountain, and we roll down towards Erik.

"You won't escape!" He shouts.

" **Gomu Gomu no Pistol!"** Luffy shouts as he strings his arms out behind him.

 **Kama-Kama no Whirlwind!"** Erik shouts as he slashes his arms out in front of him which deflects Luffy's arms enough for Erik to jump out of the way of the cart as we continue to speed down the side of the mountain.

"There's a boulder in the way!" Apis shouts in worry as it approaches.

"Luffy!" Nami shouts up to him as he sits on Ryuuji.

" **Gomu Gomu no Gatling!"** He shouts as he punches out at the boulder breaking it up in time as we barrel through, large debris comes crashing down, and I swat it away from Apis and I as I cover her with my body and Ryuuji helps.

"This is nuts!" Apis shouts and Luffy and I laugh.

"That's just the way it goes!" Luffy laughs, but his head gets caught on a branch, he neck stretches out, and he body about to go with it but Ryuuji grabs bim.

"MORON!" I shout as Ryuuji pulls him back and his head dislodges from the branch he flies back onto Ryuuji a little dizzy.

"Thanks for that…" Luffy mumbles, and we continue to roll down the side of the mountain and Apis starts giggling and laughing.

"Yahoo!" She cheers as we jump into the air slightly as we roll down the side of the mountain, I join in as we jolt around and we get to the cape over the Marines' ship.

"GO!" Luffy cheers as we soar into the air towards the mast of the ship and hit right into it, the force knocks the mast over hard. We fly over into the water with a few jolts before settling into the water.

"So! Result, right!" Apis yells with a thumbs up.

"She's right!" Luffy laughs from a top Ryuuji.

"PURSUE! Pursue that ship!" I hear one of the Marines shout from the wreck of a ship and Zoro and Usopp move the ship towards us, Usopp throws a couple of ropes towards us, I catch one pulling on it as Usopp comes down and Luffy, Sanji and Nami go up, and Usopp ties the ropes around the logs.

"That should do it!" Usopp calls up.

"That was fun," Luffy comments.

" _So_ much fun!" Apis agrees.

"Apis, you all right?" Nami asks her from the ship and Apis hums in agreement nodding her head. "All set, Luffy! We can leave any time."

"Yosh! To Lost Island! Forward!" Luffy exclaims.

"And which way's that?" Usopp asks him.

"Over there?" Luffy wonders, pointing over in different directions. "Maybe over there?"

"Are we really going to be okay?" Usopp asks me as he looks over at me.

"Guess we just have to pick a direction and try it," I reply.

"It's not on any map."Nami agrees.

"The keen Nami-san is so wonderful~!" Sanji swoons.

"Why me…" Usopp mumbles and I grab Apis into my arms and jump onto the ropes and balance running up the rope to the ship; I jump onto the railing by Zoro frightening him as I place Apis on the deck as we set sail.

"We're headed to… Lost Island!" Luffy cheers as we sail off.

It's been an hour or so since we set sail, I sit on the rear railing looking over Ryuuji and Luffy. "Lost Island, huh? Judging from the maps… there doesn't seem to be any other islands within the vicinity of Warship Island." Nami points out, from her seat.

"Oi, Granpa Dragon! Where are we supposed to go?" Usopp asks Ryuuji and Luffy bends over to look into Ryuuji's eyes that look almost dead with no emotion inside them.

"Hey." He greets him, but Ryuuji closes his eyes, turning his head slightly from him. "Looks like he's dozed off again." I look back at the others with a sigh.

"Sorry to keep you waiting guys! Lunch is ready!" Apis yells out as she walks up to the stairs.

"More of her cooking?" Zoro mutters in fear of her food.

"I wasn't 'waiting' for this…" Usopp also mutters, and I smack them on the side of the head, they yell out in pain, looking back at me as I turn away trying to look innocent in my new clothes, more easier to fight with my ripped black jeans and striped black and white slightly loose jumper. I pull my hair into a ponytail using a piece of cloth as Apis walks over to the railing with a pot of food I guess for Ryuuji, but Usopp seems to get the wrong idea causing Apis to stomp on his foot, and I take the boiling pot from her as she sets it on the railing with some difficulty.

"Ryuuji! Eat up!" Apis calls down to him.

"Ah, food!" Luffy exclaims as he stretches his arms out to the pot and completely misses the fact that Apis is wearing oven gloves and takes the pot before noticing halfway. "HOT!" He cries out, dropping the bowl and spilling the contents.

"ARGH! YOU DUMBASS!" Sanji yells at Luffy as he's now broken one of his rules on this ship. The pot lands on top of Ryuuji's head, the heat wakes from his nap and his eyes almost pop out of their sockets, Apis jumps up onto the railing.

"Ryuuji!" She calls out to him before gripping onto the ropes and sliding down towards the cart without a second thought. "Ryuuji!" She panics and runs over to the Millennium Dragon and clears the food off of his head while he seems to be spacing out, his eyes almost alive. "Ryuuji. Are you alright?" She asks him when his eyes seem to dim as he looks over at her.

"Good grief, you wasted the food I made specially for him," Sanji complains.

"You can just make more, right?" Usopp asks him as if it were obvious.

"What have I told you about wasting food?" Sanji questions him getting annoyed with the long nose.

"What's up?" Luffy asks Apis as he picks up the boiling pot with his sandals covering his hands.

"Lost Island… the Dragon's Nest… is east of Warship Island." Apis answers seeming a little shocked but Luffy grins at her happily.

"So that's where Lost Island is!?" Luffy exclaims as he leans over to her, happily.

"Ryuuji remembered!" Apis joins in exclaiming and they both have massive grins on their faces as they cheer.

"We've got it!" Luffy yells up at us, gaining the other's attention. "Lost Island is east of Warship Island!"

"Ryuuji just said so!" Apis yells up also.

"Just like that!" Luffy cheers.

"Usopp, come help me!" Nami orders him.

"Sure!" Usopp agrees, and they run off together, running down the steps.

"Yosh set course for Lost Island. FULL SAIL!" Luffy shouts ordering us with a big ass grin on his face.

"Moron, you better eat all of this," Sanji warns him with a hint of a threat in his voice.

"Sure! Don't worry!" Luffy assures him, and I have to say doubting that Luffy won't eat everything is just stupid, I get up from the railing and walk down the stairs to the kitchen.

Inside with everyone, we start eating our lunch, I dig in and slap Luffy's hand away from my food as I sit with Apis on my right and Zoro on my left. "Luffy, knock it off," I scold him as I slap his hand away again.

Full stomachs and everyone delighted with Sanji's cooking like always it's mine, Zoro and Sanji's turn to do the dishes as of now Luffy is banned from doing anything besides eating in the kitchen after breaking some plates last time. Sanji does the washing up, while Zoro dries them and I put them away. "Here, Zoro." Sanji keeps saying as he hands over the wet plate and Zoro wipes them before stacking them on the side for me to put away.

"You don't have to keep saying that, you know…" Zoro tells him, and I take the plates from the side and put them in the top cabinet, and I let out a sigh as we finish, I look out the window to see Apis standing at the rear railing looking over Ryuuji.

I walk outside to the rear railing with Apis; I sit down on the railing watching over Ryuuji with Apis, I take her onto my lap as we watch over the Millennium Dragon. "Hey, Ryuuji! Not long now! Soon we'll be at Lost Island! It's there, right? The Dragon's Nest! If you go to the Dragon's Nest, you'll get better, right?..., huh?... That's silly, saying thanks already! We're not even there yet!" Apis says, and something Ryuuji says seems to set her in a bad mood. "Oh, come on! I do _not_ think you're a bother! What's with you?! Hey, Ryuuji! Are you listening!? It's not fair for you to keep quiet! Say something!" Apis starts shouting thrashing around in my arms, so I don't drop her into the ocean or myself when I hear Nami and Usopp let out a shriek of fear, I turn around to see a mirage of our ship, and we sail right through. I put Apis down on the deck, and we walk over with Sanji and Zoro as we look through the thick fog surrounding us when it fades out and storm clouds rolls in with rain pouring down.

"What is WRONG with this ocean!?" Nami shouts, and I look up at her with a knowing smirk.

"You haven't seen anything yet," I mutter under my breath and I feel the ship tilt violently and hold onto Apis to keep her steady, but Zoro and Sanji get knocked off of their feet and come crashing into us, Apis, and I get sandwiched between them.

"Bastard, watch what you're doing!" Zoro cusses Sanji.

"I don't exactly like it either, shithead!" Sanji cusses right back.

"Sanji-Kun! Zoro! I'll take in the sails! Unfasten the ropes!" Nami orders from the crow's nest.

"Yes, Nami-san~!" Sanji replies all too happily.

"You have to get below deck!" I tell Apis as I hold onto her arm, keeping her steady.

"No way! I have to be with Ryuji!" Apis argues and pulls herself from my grip and tries to run but with the storm raging around us, the ship keeps getting knocked side to side.

"Idiot! Just being with him won't help at all!" Zoro scolds her.

"Ryuuji is just sitting there, helpless! I have to get to him!" Apis yells over the crashing waves and slips on the soaked deck onto the opposite railing.

"Would you just listen to us!?" I scold her and take her into my arms before placing her under my arm taking some rope from the side and tie it around her waist and walk over to the rear railing where Apis spends most of her time looking over Ryuuji and tie it around the railing before I walk away back to the helm steering us through the storm.

Inside the cabin, with the door open I hear everything but I try focusing on keeping the ship upright as we sail through the storm when I hear Apis cry out, I look outside the window Zoro and Apis as they hold onto the ropes keeping Ryuuji's cart to the ship.

I race outside to the rear of the ship to Apis and Zoro; I grab ahold of the ropes behind Zoro as we struggle a little with the ropes from the rocky waves coming from the storm. "Didn't we promise to find the Dragon's Nest together?!" Apis shouts to Ryuuji over the strong winds, when Luffy jumps up behind us onto the mast and wraps his body around it before stretching his arm out.

" **Gomu Gomu no Lasso!"** Luffy shouts as he ties his arm around one of the front wheels of the cart and pulls as the three of us do the same.

"Luffy!" Apis whispers watching my Brother struggle a little.

"I'm fine! Leave it to me! I promised to take you to the Dragon's Nest, didn't I?!" Luffy replies with confidence.

"Right!" Apis exclaims, and we sail through the storm to the centre where a column of light with the island, dead centre.

Inside the eye of the storm, it's very calm, and the island looks like no one has lived there for centuries. "So that storm surrounds the whole island, huh? Almost like it's to prevent people from entering. Until now, no one has ever been able to find this place. Must have been because of that storm." I remark as we slowly sail towards the island.

"Ya know what? Instead of an island, it looks like a castle sitting on the sea." Luffy comments and I have to agree as we anchor off of the coast of the island and climb down to Ryuuji's cart and paddle to the island.

I look up at the island as we walk on, the sky around the island is clear, but the surrounding atmosphere is all dark rainstorm clouds, I look around at the structure seeing the island is sinking back into the ocean as the stone step are half underwater along with statues of dragons and other things. "Hey, look at that!" Usopp calls out as he points over into the water at one of the icons poking out. "Doesn't that look like the shape of a dragon? This must really be the island of the Millennium Dragons."

"Those dragons were pretty slick!" Luffy remarks.

"Idiot! Obviously, humans built these buildings." Sanji corrects him.

"Well, whoever built it." Zoro cuts in.

"We're here! Lost Island!" Luffy cheers.

"In any case, I wonder how long it's been since anyone lived here. Looks like the jungle took over long ago." Sanji comments and I have to agree with him on that.

"Oh yeah, where do you suppose the Dragon's Nest is?" Nami wonders.

"Hey! Ryuuji! Come on, Ryuuji! Really! We're at the island where the Dragon's Nest is? C'mon get up! Hey!" Apis goads Ryuuji from his nap as he opens his eyes slowly before closing them again.

"What'd he say?" I ask her as Luffy walks up next to me.

"He doesn't know. Maybe this isn't Lost Island." Apis answers and I have a hunch she's right, but I can't put my finger on it just yet.

"What?" Zoro questions with slight disappointment.

"You gotta be kidding!" Sanji sputters out in disbelief.

"We had to go through that huge storm to get here!" Usopp complains and I narrow my eyes at him.

"Apis!" Luffy calls out, and I look over at him as he stands facing away from the rest of us and pointing up at the summit. "Take a look at the summit! If we climb up there, we'll be able to see the whole island!"

"He's right. We won't gain anything by sitting here thinking. Wanna take a look?" Nami asks her.

"Yeah!" Apis agrees.

"Yosh! Set off!" Luffy chimes in and Nami sends me a wink and turns around to face the boys, but Luffy, and Sanji gets a lovesick look in his eyes.

"Would you boys mind pushing the cart?" Nami asks them using the sultry voice I helped perfect and well it only works on the lovesick fool, and she snaps. "Just do it!" She snaps at the other three, and they move to push and pull the cart.

We walk up the side of the mountain while I carry Apis on my back with Nami next to us and the boys pushing and pulling the cart, Zoro and Luffy pulling and Sanji and Usopp pushing and some of them aren't doing it quietly. "That conniving, making the men do all the work. Why doesn't she help push a little?!" Usopp complains rather loudly.

"You over there, stop chattering and push!" Nami calls back at him.

"Quit enjoying this so much, dammit!" Usopp shouts over at her.

"I shall stop chattering and push~!" Sanji declares. "Ah, the lively Nami-san is so wonderful!"

"Would you shut up!?" Usopp snaps at him as we walk up some steep stairs and at the top is what appears to be the remains of a town.

"A town?" I wonder aloud as we all look in awe at the sight of the old crumbling buildings.

"Wow." Luffy agrees as we continue through the street. "Everything's run down. Looks like people really did live here."

"But you can only tell 'cause of the houses," Zoro comments and he's not wrong.

"But why is there no one here now?" Usopp asks an interesting question.

"Who knows, maybe they found someplace easier to live," Sanji suggests and Apis taps me on my shoulder, I look back at her as she points to something in the grass, I stop and walk to the side of the path stepping into the grass, I bend down to see a spinning top with a dragon painted on and pass it to Apis as she studies it.

"It's a Millennium Dragon toy. Maybe the Millennium Dragons and the kids on the islands used to play together." Apis wonders when a flock of birds circle overhead, we look up at them. "Hey, are you friends with the Millennium Dragons too?"

"Hey, Apis, Dakota? You're gonna get left behind." Nami calls out as one of the birds perches on Apis' shoulder, and I jog over to Nami.

"Y'know what? This bird just told me. There is a building with a dragon mark on it at the top of the mountain!" Apis announces.

"You serious?!" Usopp exclaims though very tired from all of the pushing.

"Let's hurry; it might be the Dragon's Nest!" Apis exclaims, and I run up ahead to the back of the cart, leaving Nami behind.

"Nami! Hurry up!" Luffy calls back to her, and she runs after us to catch up.

"Wait up!" She yells out as she runs stopping next to Apis and I as we walk up the rest of the mountain.

Finally, up the top of the mountain, I bend my knees to let Apis jump off of my back as we stand out the doors of a building of some sort with a dragon painted on almost fading away. "Heave ho!" Luffy yells and the guys all push and pulls the cart over the last step.

"We finally made it. I can't go anymore." Usopp whines as he falls on his ass from exhaustion.

"Thanks for showing us the way!" Apis yells after the bird as it flies away.

"Hey, we sure came a long way," Sanji comments as he looks out at the view and it is beautiful.

"Thanks for your help guys," Apis says to the boys as they walk over to us.

"Yeah, good work!" Nami agrees.

"Agreed, good work!" I add on, as we all turn around to face the door.

"This picture is… a Millennium Dragon, huh?" Nami wonders as we stare at the door.

"Yeah, looks like it." Luffy comments.

"Is this building the Dragon's Nest?" Sanji inquires, and I shake my head.

"This place?" Usopp asks, poking his head out.

"Hey hold up, where's the door? How are we supposed to get inside?" Zoro wonders and I have to agree.

"The door's right here!" Luffy points at the wall in front of us.

"Oh you nitwit, we don't have a key. How are we gonna open it!?" Nami whines at Luffy and Apis walks over to the wall-door.

"Oi!" Usopp calls out as he walks over.

"Apis… that pendant… could it be?" I wonder as I look at it.

"Is it the key to open the Dragon's Nest?" Sanji wonders also, and Apis tries to reach for the hole in the wall shaped like the pendant, but she's slightly too small, and she turns to face us with unshed tears in her eyes.

"I can't reach!" She sniffles and Luffy walks over before I can.

"You sure are small, Apis," Luffy comments as he bends over as he talks to her.

"What was that?!" Apis snaps at him, and he takes the claw pendant.

"Hey, leave it to me!" He tells her, and before he can put it in the stones from under our feet collapse in, I pull Apis into my arms as we fall through the ground.

We fall through some tree roots deep into the ground, and soon I land on my back with Apis safe in my arms while the others like myself lie around on the ground, I gradually lift myself and look up at the ceiling and hole we fell through. "We're… alive, right?" Usopp wonders.

"Yeah, seems so. By the way, whose idea was it to use a key up there?" Sanji asks, and Apis lets out a nervous laugh when Luffy gives her claw pendant back.

"Here, ya go," Luffy says and places it in her waiting palm, and he gives her a goofy smile, I get to my feet, and I place her on hers.

"Well doesn't matter, we're inside now," I remark as I dust off my trousers.

"Result right!" Apis jokes as she gives us a smile and a thumbs up.

"But… what is this place?" Zoro asks, and I have to agree.

"And… what do you think that is?" Luffy asks, and we all look up at the images on the ceiling fading and cracking away.

"What… is it?" Apis asks as we all stare up in a trance.

 **TO BE CONTINUED… (JANUARY 19TH)**


	17. IAN

p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px;"span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bold;"Important Author's Note: As you may know every month on the 20th, I change my stories. Between the six: Bounty Hunter Series, The Strawhat's Red Devil, Twin Haruno Series, The Darkmore Series, and Explosive Love. I've been a little irritated with the fact that I keep forgetting notes on other story chapters and such so I have decided I will continue the six stories at a time and in the same rotation but with a different approach. The approach is that for example: if I am doing the Bounty Hunter Series, I will not be finishing on the 19th of January next year but will only jump to the next story if I have completed a Season, or Arc or even maybe a Saga. As you may know from my stories, I have not finished them and will go through them and finish them before starting over. If you have a comment on this, please tell me also thank you! I will be finishing this story on the 19th of December and starting my new schedule. DEADGIRLETERNAL OUT!/span/p 


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